''Sahara Cross'' is a

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

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 ...

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

directed by

Tonino Valerii Tonino Valerii (20 May 1934 – 13 October 2016) was an Italian film director, most known for his Spaghetti Westerns. Tonino (Antonio) Valerii started his film career as an assistant director on Sergio Leone's ''A Fistful of Dollars'', before mo ...

. It is the first Italian film to use

steadicam Steadicam is a brand of camera stabilizer mounts for Movie camera, motion picture cameras invented by Garrett Brown and introduced in 1975 by Cinema Products Corporation. It was designed to isolate the camera from the camera operator's movement ...

.David Ballerini, ''Steadicam. Una rivoluzione nel modo di fare cinema'', Falsopiano, Alessandria 1999, p. 70.

Plot

Cast

Franco Nero Francesco Clemente Giuseppe Sparanero (born 23 November 1941), known professionally as Franco Nero, is an Italian actor, producer, and director. His breakthrough role was as the title character in the Spaghetti Western film '' Django'' (1966), ...

as Jean Bellard *

Michel Constantin Michel Constantin (born Constantin Hokhloff, 13 July 1924 – 29 August 2003) was a French film actor. Biography Born to a Russian father and a Polish mother in Billancourt (near Paris), Constantin made his first film appearance in 1956. Hi ...

as Carl Mank *

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 ...

as Nicole * Mauro Barabani as Hamid * Antonio Cantafora as Georges (as Michael Coby) *

Nazzareno Zamperla Nazzareno Zamperla (25 April 1937 – 19 March 2020) was an Italian actor and stuntman. Career Born in Treviso into a circus family, Zamperla came to Rome in 1949 and worked primarily in the 1950s and 1960s as a stunt performer. His focus was on ...

as Captain Zaft

Production

The film was originally very different than the completed film. Valerii stated that the film was originally titled ''Arissa Ballerina'' and written by

Adriano Belli Adriano Belli (born August 25, 1977) is a retired football player who played in the CFL and NFL. Belli is nicknamed "The Kissing Bandit" for his penchant for kissing people on their cheeks. He has gained a reputation for being a kind and f ...

. Valerii commented that "In short, everything was the opposite of what

Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

recommended, that is, that characters must ignore what the viewer knows. I told the producers I would make a film out of that script, because it just made no sense!" Gastaldi and Valerii re-wrote the script, but struggled as the Tunisian co-production signed on to Belli's script. Gastaldi's contribution added new motivations for characters and included a few new scenes such as the battle between two bulldozers. Valerii wasn't initially happy with casting

, stating that "Sometimes you have to make do with compromises or economical limitations, Villoresi is a very good actress, but I wouldn't cast her as a terrorist, if it weren't for a pre-signed agreement." The film was shot in nine weeks. It was shot at Cinecitta with exteriors shot in

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

. Valerii used a

for the desert shots. As it was a very first model, director of photography Franco Di Giacomo and cameraman Gianfranco Transunto were sent for special training in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

to use it.

Release

''Sahara Cross'' was released in Italy on September 7, 1977 where it was distributed by F.A.R. The film grossed a total of 706,960,000

Italian lira The lira (; plural lire) was the currency of Italy between 1861 and 2002. It was first introduced by the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy in 1807 at par with the French franc, and was subsequently adopted by the different states that would eventually f ...

on its theatrical run.

Footnotes

References

External links

*
''Sahara Cross''
at

Variety Distribution Variety Distribution is an Italian-based film distribution company. It distributes Italian films worldwide, produced from the 1930s onward. History Variety Distribution (formerly Variety Film and Variety Communications) has been in the film ...

1977 films Italian action films 1977 action films Films set in Tunisia Films shot in Tunisia Films about terrorism Films scored by Riz Ortolani Films set in deserts Films directed by Tonino Valerii Films with screenplays by Ernesto Gastaldi 1970s Italian films {{1970s-action-film-stub