''Three Tough Guys'' (also known as ''Tough Guys'') is a 1974

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

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

Duccio Tessari Duccio Tessari (11 October 1926 – 6 September 1994) was an Italian director, screenwriter and actor, considered one of the fathers of Spaghetti Westerns. Born in Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian re ...

. It may be regarded as an example of the

Blaxploitation Blaxploitation is an ethnic subgenre of the exploitation film that emerged in the United States during the early 1970s. The term, a portmanteau of the words "black" and "exploitation", was coined in August 1972 by Junius Griffin, the president o ...

genre. It stars Lino Ventura,

Fred Williamson Frederick Robert Williamson (born March 5, 1938), also known as The Hammer, is an American actor and former professional American football defensive back who played mainly in the American Football League during the 1960s. Williamson is perhaps ...

and

Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, actor, songwriter, and composer. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwri ...

, who also composed the soundtrack. It is a coproduction between United States, Italy (where it was released ''Uomini duri'') and France (where is known as ''Les Durs''). The film was shot in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Plot

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

priest Father Charlie and former police officer Lee solve a

bank robbery Bank robbery is the criminal act of stealing from a bank, specifically while bank employees and customers are subjected to force, violence, or a threat of violence. This refers to robbery of a bank branch or teller, as opposed to other bank- ...

mystery that stretches across the city. After Lee is removed from the force due to $1,000,000 being stolen from the bank, Father Charlie helps him to gain revenge for the loss of one of his friends.

Cast

* Lino Ventura as Father Charlie *

as Lee *

as Joe "Snake" * Paula Kelly as Fay * William Berger as Captain Ryan *

Vittorio Sanipoli Vittorio Sanipoli (1915–1992) was an Italian stage, film and television actor. He appeared in around a hundred films and television series between 1942 and 1980. Life and career Born Luciano Sanipoli in Genoa, he made his acting debut in 1939 ...

as Mike Petralia *

Lorella De Luca Lorella De Luca (17 September 1940 – 9 January 2014) was an Italian film, television, and voice actress. One of the most recognized ingenues of Italian cinema during the mid-to-late 1950s, she is best known for having played naive young girls ...

as Anne Lombardo * Mario Erpichini as Gene Lombardo *

Jess Hahn Jesse Beryle Hahn (October 29, 1921June 29, 1998) was an American- French character actor who mostly starred in French films. Biography After serving with the Marines in the Second World War, he moved to France in 1949 and took French citi ...

as The Bartender *

Jacques Herlin Jacques Herlin (17 August 1927 – 7 June 2014) was a French character actor. Born in Paris as Jacques de Jouette, he appeared in an impressive number of films from the early sixties. He was also active on stage and on television. He died i ...

as Mike Petralia *

Guido Leontini Guido Leontini (21 March 1927 – 26 April 1996) was an Italian stage, film and television actor. Life and career Born in Catania into a family of actors, Leontini debuted on stage in the post-World War II era, specializing in the Luigi Pirande ...

as Sergeant Sam *

Luciano Salce Luciano Salce (25 September 1922 – 17 December 1989) was an Italian film director, comedian, tv host, producer, actor and lyricist. His 1962 film ''Le pillole di Ercole'' was shown as part of a retrospective on Italian comedy at the 67th Ve ...

as The Bishop *

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 Snake's Henchman

Production

''Three Tough Guys'' was filmed as Vasca Navale in Rome and on location in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

between September 4 and October 1973. The film was Isaac Hayes' acting debut.

Release

''Three Tough Guys'' opened in New York on March 15, 1974. was released in France under the title ''Les durs'' on May 29, 1974. It was released in Italy under the title ''Uomini duri'' where it was distributed by

Titanus Titanus is an Italian film production company, founded in 1904 by Gustavo Lombardo (1885–1951). The company's headquarters are located at 28 Via Sommacampagna, Rome and its studios on the Via Tiburtina, 13 km from the centre of Rome. Lom ...

. It grossed a total of 761.271 million

Italian lire 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 ...

. Italian film historian and critic Roberto Curti said this gross was "moderate, but not outstanding success" as it had grossed less than half of Enzo G. Castellari's '' Street Law''.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed, conducted and performed by Isaac Hayes, with string arrangements performed by the

Memphis Symphony Orchestra The Memphis Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Memphis, Tennessee. The orchestra's primary performing venue is the Cannon Center for the Performing Arts. Prior to the formation of the orchestra, classical orchestras had existed ...

and rhythm tracks performed by Isaac Hayes' band, The Movement. The original LP record, ''Tough Guys'', was released by Enterprise Records, an imprint of

Stax Records Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in 1961. It also shared its operations with sister label Volt Records. Stax was ...

. The main theme of ''Three Tough Guys'' would be used in

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...

's '' Kill Bill Vol. 2''. “Hung Up on My Baby” was sampled for the

Geto Boys Geto Boys (originally spelled Ghetto Boys) was an American hip-hop group originally formed in Houston, Texas. The Geto Boys enjoyed success in the 1990s with the group's classic lineup consisting of Bushwick Bill, Scarface and Willie D, earning ...

song "

Mind Playing Tricks on Me "Mind Playing Tricks on Me" is a song by Geto Boys, featured on their 1991 album ''We Can't Be Stopped'' . The lyrics describe the mental anguish and exhaust of life as a gangster, including dealing with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder ...

Original track listing

Side one # "Title Theme" - 2:32 # "Randolph & Dearborn" - 4:24 # "The Red Rooster" - 4:04 # "Joe Bell" - 4:57 Side two # "Hung Up On My Baby" - 6:15 # "Kidnapped" - 2:40 # "Run Fay Run" - 2:45 # "Buns O' Plenty" - 4:37 # "The End Theme" - 1:13

Notes

References

External links

* {{Isaac Hayes 1974 films 1970s buddy films 1970s crime action films Blaxploitation films Films about Catholic priests Films directed by Duccio Tessari Films produced by Dino De Laurentiis Films set in Chicago Films with screenplays by Luciano Vincenzoni Italian crime action films Italian buddy films English-language French films English-language Italian films Isaac Hayes soundtracks Albums produced by Isaac Hayes Stax Records albums Films scored by Isaac Hayes French crime action films French buddy films Titanus films 1970s Italian films 1970s French films