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Cast | Notes | Pictures | Quotes | Synopsis - Official | Transcript | My Summary | Together Again

Cast

Directed by Sergio Citti
Written by Vincenzo Cerami & David Grieco

Notes

• 100 minutes, in Italian language only.

• The film has been only been distributed in Italy by Warner Brothers.

• AKA Death to You or The Hateful Dead.

Pictures

VHS Cover - Front
VHS Cover - Back

Quotes

    The literal translation of the title is, "The death will have his eyes". It is one of three B-movies Malcolm did in the early eighties for Empire, which was a company owned by a little gangster called Frank Yablans, with Charles Band as his producer. The company for a while owned the former De Laurentiis Studios near Rome, that was also called Empire Studios at that time. I think some of the shooting of the film was in those studios.
    It is a sort of a "Spoon River". The story takes place in a cemetery, between the living and the dead. Malcolm plays an actor who goes to cry on the grave of his stage partner because he accidentally killed her during a play. Actually he does not care about her death, it's just another opportunity to play the great actor. I wrote and rewrote the most of the film, which is what I usually do with Sergio Citti, and I also was the uncredited line producer." David Grieco from my interview with him

Synopsis - Official

Italian

Sotto lo sguardo "amorevole" del salace guardiano Domenico, gli ospiti di un piccolo cimitero di provincia raccontano come hanno raggiunto la pace eterna. Ciascuno con la sua storia, fatta di impudenza e piccole cattiverie, momenti buffi e scherzi del destino. Un allegro miscuglio di personaggi che dimostrano quanto si possa essere più vitali e sanguigni da morti che non da vivi.

English

Under "the loving" look of salacious guardian Domenico, the visitors of a small provincial cemetery   recount how they have arrived at eternal peace. Everyone has a history, made of impudence and small, funny bad moments and jokes of destiny. A happy medley of characters who show that it is possible to be more vital and optimistic with the dead than the living.

Transcript

This is an exclusive English transcript of the film because it was never released  with subtitles so this way you can follow what is going on. Much thanks to Manuela for doing the hard work of starting the translation. I cleaned it up into American.

Woman on TV: Do you have toothache?

Domenico: Stick it up your ass!!! He changes the channel: The Indians?! Cool!!

The doorbell rings.

Domenico: Now who is it this time?.... WHO IS IT???

Domenico, Domenico?

Domenico: I'm coming! I'm coming!

Soldier (Lucillo): Mr. Domenico?

Domenico: I'm here! Who is it?

Soldier: Are you Mr. Domenico?

Domenico: Ahhhh, you're the soldier?

Soldier: Yes, I am the soldier, yes!

Domenico: Eh! But you're early! They phoned me only a half hour ago about you!

Soldier: I hurried...I ran!

Domenico: Gotcha, you'll get it over faster. Here you are, you came, you came. What happened? Are you afraid??? Come in! Haha...you'll stay well here, as it was your home. Why do you want a place like this, eh? Enjoy the silence, enjoy, enjoy...you'll hear no one fly...Do you hear the quiet? Do you feel the air? Breath, Breath...AHHHHH

Soldier: They told me that you're a gentleman.

Domenico: Don't thank me, no need of it! We're all good people here. There are only good people here - the best. You don't see or hear them. All people should be the same heh heh. Here you only need to learn, you especially because you are ao young. By the way, do you have a cigarette?

Soldier: Yes yes, right away! Here you go, keep it!

Domenico: Thanks. Come, come to my home. I'll prepare you a good chamomile, so you can relax and calm down!

Chinese: Fuck you drop dead!

Tommaso Grillo: No! Fuck you drop dead!

Chinese: Fuck you drop dead!

Grillo: Fuck you drop dead!

Chinese: Fuck you drop dead?

Gillo: And your grandfather! But is it possible that you came here alive and you don't know that you are dead??

Chinese: Every night he steals something. When I arrived here, he took my silver jacket! And tonight the candle! THIEF!!

more to come...

My Summary

    1987. At night in a little cemetery on the countryside around Rome a bell rings insistently. Domenico, the caretaker goes to the gate and finds Lucillo, a young Italian soldier, just returned from an ONU mission in Africa waiting for him. Meanwhile the dead of the cemetery are in a room. There is Marchese del Grillo, a man famous for his wit, musicians, two brothers, and the lovely Alma. They have found an empty grave and no one knows what happened.
    Domenico learns Lucillo has to die and puts him into the empty grave, seals it up and he dies after a few minutes. He is then received pleasantly by the dead because they want to enjoy the afterlife.
    The dead then tell their life and death stories. For example, Lucillo walked for 4 years in Africa, because, after the mission, he missed the boat back to Italy. Upon returning to his little town he learns has become a hero in death. Everything is dedicated to him -souvenirs, the town square, streets, restaurants and his own house is a shrine. When the townspeople learn he is alive, they know it is not good for business, so he has to die.
    The Marchese del Grillo tells Lucillo that he isn't truly dead, but the dead are condemned to stay in the cemetery as long as someone remembers their name. When the time comes that no one remembers your name, the soul will be free forever.
    At the sound of bells, Alma gathers all the dead for the appointment. A man jumps over t cemetery wall and steals flowers from a grave. It's Edmondo, a Shakespearian actor in a white shirt and black pants, who every night cries on Alma's grave. He recites the same monologue each time, "Alma, why you and not me?". He is just playing a role and isn't really sad for Alma, even though he carries a gun threatening to kill himself. At the end of his speech he says, "Goodnight Alma, I'll come back the same the tomorrow night."
All the dead are very amused except Alma.
    Another of the dead, Scopone a mafia don, loves women and their butts. He collapsed on a beach from exhaustion while he was seducing a woman.
    In the morning a group of relatives arrive at the cemetery: Domenico, with a toothache, is able to make them happy by selling clothes he stole from the dead. An American brother and sister, want to send back their dad's body back to the USA and exchange his body with and Italian man, but it will cost them 5 million lire. Also old woman (Mariangela Melato) carries flowers every day to the grave of two brothers. They pretended to be blind and were engaged to a woman, but when she found them out they tried to escape and were hit by a train.
    The next night Edmondo returns. He asks Alma if there is a life after death because he is ready to kill himself to join her. Alma then tells her story. She and Edmondo were on a stage as lovers doing the final act of a tragedy where they must die. The director got very angry because he thought they weren't convincing enough. Edmondo says , "I am a great actor" and to prove it grabs a gun and shoots Alma, thinking is blank. It turns out to be real and she dies, but the director is still not convinced.
    Edmondo goes to jump the wall, misses and falls down. Domenico runs over and thinks he is dead, so he goes to steal his watch and shoes, but Edmondo recovers. He kicks Domenico and he takes Edmondo's gun, thinks it's fake and it goes off killing himself. Now Domenico joins the dead of his cemetery.
    Meanwhile, Edmondo gives the greatest performance of his life wailing and crying on Alma's grave. He becomes so wrapped up in the ending where he is supposed to die, that he actually does and all the dead applaud him.
    The next morning as the relatives arrive at the cemetery all the dead dance and laugh.

Together Again

2004 - Malcolm and David Grieco worked together on Evilenko.

This page © 2005-08 Alex D. Thrawn for www.MalcolmMcDowell.net