''A Dangerous Toy'' (originally titled ''Il giocattolo'') is a

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

film written and directed by

Giuliano Montaldo Giuliano Montaldo (born 22 February 1930) is an Italian film director. Biography While he was still a young student, Montaldo was recruited by the director Carlo Lizzani for the role of leading actor in the film ''Achtung! Banditi!'' (1951). ...

. It was co-produced by

Sergio Leone Sergio Leone (; 3 January 1929 – 30 April 1989) was an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter credited as the pioneer of the Spaghetti Western genre and widely regarded as one of the most influential directors in the history of cin ...

. The toy of the title is a gun. The film chronicles how a frustrated and shy accountant may become a cruel and ruthless executioner. For his role in this film

Vittorio Mezzogiorno Vittorio Mezzogiorno (16 December 1941 – 7 January 1994) was an Italian actor. Biography Mezzogiorno was born in Cercola, the youngest of seven children. His older brother Vincenzo, who wanted to become a director, introduced him to the thea ...

won the

Silver Ribbon The Nastro d'Argento, also known by its translated name Silver Ribbon, is an Italian film award awarded each year since 1946 by the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists (Italian: ''Sindacato Nazionale Giornalisti Cinematografici Italiani ...

for Best Supporting Actor.

Plot

The accountant Vittorio Barletta lives in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

with his wife Ada. A friend since childhood of the industrialist Nicola Griffo, Vittorio serves him as a security carrier and as a cover for "black funds". Wounded in the course of a robbery at a supermarket, Barletta is replaced by a more aggressive former

carabinieri The Carabinieri (, also , ; formally ''Arma dei Carabinieri'', "Arm of Carabineers"; previously ''Corpo dei Carabinieri Reali'', "Royal Carabineers Corps") are the national gendarmerie of Italy who primarily carry out domestic and foreign polic ...

marshal for the tasks of security guard of the Griffo. In the meantime, having made acquaintance and friendship with the

agent Agent may refer to: Espionage, investigation, and law *, spies or intelligence officers * Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another ** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuranc ...

Sauro Civera, Vittorio finds out of having a talent for pistol shooting and becomes so expert as to win shooting competitions. Robbed of his newly acquired weapon, the accountant receives a pistol as a gift from Sauro. Having gone with his policeman friend to a pizzeria, the latter recognizes a convict who reacts by killing him, but Vittorio too, after a few moments of perplexity, shoots and kills the bandit. The TV and the press cover the hero but the noise doesn't last long and doesn't bring in money. Ada is seriously ill. Vittorio is teased by Nicola, by his wife, Laura, and by the reckless daughter of the Griffos, Patrizia. Meanwhile, threats of evil are multiplying, communicated by telephone or through anonymous letters. During an ambush he shots and wounds the attackers then he spends a few days in jail. Abandoned by Nicola, who fires him after making him sign the sale of a phantom company, the accountant locks himself up in the house with the increasingly weak Ada. Then, when he can't take it anymore, Vittorio decides to humiliate the Griffos, but his dying wife is determined to stop him.

Cast

Nino Manfredi Saturnino "Nino" Manfredi (22 March 1921 – 4 June 2004) was an Italian actor, voice actor, director, screenwriter, playwright, comedian, singer, author, radio personality and television presenter. He was one of the most prominent Italian a ...

: Vittorio Barletta *

Marlène Jobert Marlène Jobert (born 4 November 1940) is a French actress and author. Life and career Jobert was born in Algiers, Algeria, to a Sephardic Jewish and Pied-Noir family, the daughter of Eliane Azulay and Charles Jobert, who served in the French A ...

: Ada Barletta *

Arnoldo Foà Arnoldo Foà (24 January 1916 – 11 January 2014) was an Italian actor, voice actor, theatre director, singer and writer. He appeared in more than 130 films between 1938 and 2014. Biography Foà was born in Ferrara, Italy, to a Jewish fa ...

: Nicola Griffo *

: Sauro Civera *

Olga Karlatos Olga Karlatos ( el, Όλγα Καρλάτου; born Olga Vlassopulos, April 20, 1945) is a retired Greek actress and Bermudian lawyer, known primarily for performing in Italian horror cinema. Career Between the end of the sixties and the e ...

: Laura Griffo *

Pamela Villoresi Maria Pamela Villoresi (born 1 January 1957) is an Italian theatre, cinema and television actress. She has performed in more than 100 theatrical productions and in more than 30 films. Life and career The daughter of a cloth merchant of Prato ...

: Patrizia Griffo *

Mario Brega is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creat ...

: the robber *

Luciano Catenacci Luciano Catenacci (13 April 1933 – 4 October 1990) was an Italian actor and production manager who worked on mainly Italian produced films during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Life and career Born in Rome, Catenacci started his career as ...

: Griffo's bodyguard *

Renato Scarpa Renato Scarpa (14 September 1939 – 30 December 2021) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 85 films from 1969 to 2019. Scarpa died on 30 December 2021, at the age of 82. Selected filmography * '' St. Michael Had a Rooster'' (1972) * '' ...

: the gunsmith *

Daniele Formica Daniele Formica (10 June 1949 – 1 February 2011) was an Irish-born Italian actor, voice actor, theatre director, playwright and television personality. Formica was best known for portraying comical characters in various Italian comedy films in ...

: Gualtiero *

Arnaldo Ninchi Arnaldo Ninchi (17 December 1935 – 6 May 2013) was an Italian actor, voice actor and basketball player. Ninchi was born in Pesaro, the son of the actor Annibale. In his youth he was a basketball player, debuting on the national team at just 1 ...

: TV interviewer

References

External links

* 1979 films 1970s crime thriller films 1970s action thriller films Italian vigilante films 1970s Italian-language films Films directed by Giuliano Montaldo 1979 crime drama films Films scored by Ennio Morricone Films set in Milan Films with screenplays by Sergio Donati 1970s vigilante films 1970s crime action films 1970s Italian films {{1970s-Italy-film-stub