Antonio Margheriti

Antonio Margheriti
Margheriti in 1953
Born(1930-09-19)19 September 1930
Rome, Kingdom of Italy
Died4 November 2002(2002-11-04) (aged 72)
Monterosi, Italy
Other namesAnthony M. Dawson
Antony Daisies
Occupation(s)Film director
screenwriter

Antonio Margheriti (19 September 1930 – 4 November 2002), also known under the pseudonyms Anthony M. Dawson and Antony Daisies[1][2] ("daisies" is "margherite" in Italian), was an Italian filmmaker.[3] Margheriti worked in many different genres in the Italian film industry, and was known for his sometimes derivative but often stylish and entertaining science fiction, sword and sandal, horror/giallo, Eurospy, Spaghetti Western, Vietnam War and action movies that were released to a wide international audience.[4] He died in 2002.[5]

Early life and career

Antonio Margheriti was born in Rome on 19 September 1930.[1] Margheriti was the son of a railroad engineer and began his film career in 1950 working with Mario Serandrei.[1][2] He then began making short documentaries beginning with Vecchia Roma in 1953.[2] In 1954, Margheriti was credited with special effects in films such as Pino Mercanti's I cinque dell'Adamello and La notte che la terra tremo.[2] By 1955 he was credited in screenplays such as Classe di ferro.[2]

Directing

Margheriti grew up reading science fiction comics, and when he was offered the film Space-Men, he signed on as director.[2] He followed up this film with Battle of the Worlds starring actor Claude Rains,[2] which was in turn followed by The Golden Arrow with Tab Hunter and some more peplum-style films such as The Fall of Rome and Giants of Rome.[2] Other genres tackled in the 1960s included horror—Castle of Blood, The Long Hair of Death and The Virgin of Nuremberg and the Eurospy films: Bob Fleming... Mission Casablanca and Operazione Goldman.[2][6][7]

Margheriti then returned to science fiction with his Gamma I series, originally filmed for the Italian television series Fantascienza but afterwards released theatrically.[8] Margheriti followed these films with some westerns, including Take a Hard Ride and And God Said to Cain.[8][9]

In the 1980s, Margheriti created films following the success of Platoon[10] and Raiders of the Lost Ark, such as The Last Hunter and Hunters of the Golden Cobra, which both starred David Warbeck.[8] Warbeck also starred in Tiger Joe, a film overshadowed by tragedy when Margheriti's long time cinematographer, Riccardo Pallottini, died in a plane crash while attempting to get the film's last shot.[8]

He delved into the genre of films inspired by The Wild Geese with Code Name: Wild Geese and Commando Leopard starring Lewis Collins as well as Conan the Barbarian (1982) with Yor, the Hunter from the Future, which was shot in Turkey and was picked up by Columbia Pictures for an American release to 1400 theaters.[11]

Margheriti died on 4 November 2002.[5]

Style

Margheriti's specialty in films was low budget efforts that fell into genres such as action and science fiction.[1] To make films in short amounts of time, Margheriti applied techniques such as shooting with several cameras simultaneously, allowing him to record master shots, close-ups, and more.[2] This often led him to light films very carefully, and allowed him to create several films per year.[2]

Partial filmography

Note: The films listed as N/A are not necessarily chronological.
Title Year Credited as Notes Ref(s)
Director Screenwriter Screen story writer Other
Space-Men 1960 Yes Yes [12][2][13]
Battle of the Worlds 1961 Yes [14]
The Golden Arrow 1962 Yes [15]
The Fall of Rome 1963 Yes Yes [16]
The Virgin of Nuremberg Yes Yes [16]
Castle of Blood 1964 Yes [17]
Devil of the Desert Against the Son of Hercules Yes [18]
Hercules, Prisoner of Evil Yes [19]
Giants of Rome Yes [20][21]
The Long Hair of Death Yes Yes [22]
Wild, Wild Planet 1966 Yes [23][24]
Lightning Bolt Yes [25]
The Young, the Evil and the Savage 1968 Yes Yes [26][27]
The Unnaturals 1969 Yes Yes Yes Yes Producer [28]
And God Said to Cain 1970 Yes Yes [29]
Web of the Spider 1971 Yes Yes [30]
Treasure Island 1972 Yes [31][32]
Seven Deaths in the Cat's Eye 1973 Yes Yes [33]
Rudeness 1975 Yes Yes [34]
Death Rage 1976 Yes [35]
Yor, the Hunter from the Future 1983 Yes Yes [36]
Code Name: Wild Geese 1984 Yes Yes [37][38]
Jungle Raiders 1985 Yes [39][40]
Presentimento — Yes Yes [41]
Classe di ferro — Yes Yes [42]
Gambe d'oro 1958 Yes Yes [43]
Promesse di marinaio — Yes Yes [44]
Roulotte e roulette — Yes Yes [45]
Solitudine — Yes [46]
Il pelo nel mondo — Yes [47]
War of the Planets — Yes [48]
Bob Fleming... Mission Casablanca — Yes [49]
Joe l'implacabile — Yes [50]
Io ti amo — Yes Yes Yes [51]
Vengeance — Yes Yes [52]
Mr. Superinvisible — Yes [53]
Finalmente le mille e una notte — Yes Yes [54]
Novelle galeotte d'amore dal Decamerone — Yes Yes Yes [55]
Mr. Hercules Against Karate — Yes Yes [56]
The Stranger and the Gunfighter — Yes Yes [57]
Manone il ladrone — Yes Yes Yes [58]
Fantasma en el Oeste — Yes Yes Yes [59]
Cannibal Apocalypse 1980 Yes [60]
The Last Hunter — Yes [61]
Car Crash — Yes [62]
Hunters of the Golden Cobra — Yes [63]
Tiger Joe — Yes [64]
Tornado: The Last Blood — Yes [65]
The Ark of the Sun God — Yes [66]
Commando Leopard — Yes [67]
The Commander — Yes [68]
it:Alien degli abissi (Alien from the Deep[69]) 1989 Yes [70]
Indio — Yes [71]
Indio 2 - La rivolta — Yes [72]

Legacy

In the documentary on the Image DVD release of his film Cannibal Apocalypse, Margheriti proudly mentioned that it was Quentin Tarantino's favorite among his films. In Tarantino's film Inglourious Basterds, Eli Roth's character Donny Donowitz uses "Antonio Margheriti" as an alias in an undercover operation at the cinema screening of Stolz der Nation.[73][74][75][better source needed] There is also a reference in Tarantino's film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. In said film, Leonardo DiCaprio portrays the fictional actor Rick Dalton, who goes to Italy in 1969 to film Spaghetti Westerns, including one spy thriller directed by Margheriti titled Operazione Dyn-o-mite.[76]

References

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c d Fischer 2011, p. 422.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Fischer 2011, p. 423.
  3. ^ "Antonio Margheriti". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2007. Archived from the original on 3 December 2007.
  4. ^ Roberto Chiavini; Gian Filippo Pizzo; Michele Tetro (2003). Il grande cinema di fantascienza: aspettando il monolito nero (1902–1967) [The great science fiction cinema: waiting for the black monolith (1902–1967)] (in Italian). Volume 2 di Il grande cinema di fantascienza, Collana gli Album. Gremese. p. 159. ISBN 8884402662.
  5. ^ a b Paul 2005, p. 171.
  6. ^ Fischer 2011, p. 424.
  7. ^ Paul 2005, p. 163.
  8. ^ a b c d Fischer 2011, p. 425.
  9. ^ Paul 2005, p. 164.
  10. ^ Paul 2005, p. 165.
  11. ^ Fischer 2011, p. 426.
  12. ^ "Space Men". Archivio del cinema Italiano (in Italian). Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  13. ^ "Assignment: Outer Space". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on 3 April 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  14. ^ "Battle of the Worlds". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on 3 April 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
  15. ^ Kinnard & Crnkovich 2017, p. 67.
  16. ^ a b Curti 2015, p. 97.
  17. ^ Curti 2015, p. 109.
  18. ^ Kinnard & Crnkovich 2017, p. 47.
  19. ^ Kinnard & Crnkovich 2017, p. 91.
  20. ^ Kinnard & Crnkovich 2017, p. 63.
  21. ^ Kinnard & Crnkovich 2017, p. 64.
  22. ^ Curti 2015, p. 124.
  23. ^ "I criminali della Galassia (1965)" (in Italian). Archviodelcinemaitaliano.it. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  24. ^ "The Wild, Wild Planet". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on 2 April 2014. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  25. ^ "Lightning Bolt". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on 3 April 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
  26. ^ "The Young, the Evil and the Savage". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on 3 April 2014. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  27. ^ "Nude... si muore (1967)" (in Italian). Archviodelcinemaitaliano.it. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  28. ^ Curti 2015, p. 194.
  29. ^ "Satan der Rache". Filmportal.de (in German). Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  30. ^ Curti 2017, p. 37.
  31. ^ "L'isola del tesoro (1973)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  32. ^ "Die Schatzinsel" (in German). Filmportal.de. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  33. ^ Curti 2017, p. 93.
  34. ^ Curti 2013, p. 145.
  35. ^ Curti 2013, p. 172.
  36. ^ Curti 2016, p. 177.
  37. ^ "Geheimcode Wildgänse". Filmportal.de. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  38. ^ Newman, Kim (1985). "Geheimcode Wildganse". Monthly Film Bulletin. Vol. 52, no. 612. London: British Film Institute. pp. 85–86.
  39. ^ "La leggenda del rubino malese (1985)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  40. ^ Curti 2019, p. 103.
  41. ^ "Presentimento (1956)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  42. ^ "Classe di ferro (1957)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  43. ^ "Gambe d'oro (1958)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  44. ^ "Promesse di marinaio (1958)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  45. ^ "Roulotte e roulette (1959)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  46. ^ "Solitudine (1961)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  47. ^ "'Il pelo nel mondo (1964)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  48. ^ "I diafanoidi vengono da Marte (1965)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  49. ^ "A 077: sfida ai killers (1966)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  50. ^ "Joe l'implacabile (1967)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  51. ^ "Io ti amo (1968)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  52. ^ "Joko, invoca Dio e muori (1968))". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  53. ^ "L'inafferrabile invincibile Mr. Invisibile (1970)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  54. ^ "Finalmente le mille e una notte (1972)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  55. ^ "Novelle galeotte d'amore dal Decamerone (1972)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  56. ^ "Ming, ragazzi! (1973)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  57. ^ "El Kárate, el Colt y el impostor [Là dove non batte il sole] (1974)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  58. ^ "Manone il ladrone (1974)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  59. ^ "Fantasma en el Oeste [Whisky e fantasmi] (1974)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  60. ^ "Apocalypse domani (1980)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  61. ^ "L'ultimo cacciatore (1980)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  62. ^ "Car Crash (1981)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  63. ^ "I cacciatori del cobra d'oro (1982)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  64. ^ "Fuga dall'arcipelago maledetto (1982)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  65. ^ "Tornado (1983)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  66. ^ "I sopravvissuti della città morta (1984)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  67. ^ "Commando Leopard (1986)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  68. ^ "Der Commander [Il triangolo della paura] (1988)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  69. ^ "Alien from the Deep (1989)". 9 June 2003.
  70. ^ "Alien degli abissi (1989)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  71. ^ "Indio (1989)". Archivio del cinema Italiano]. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  72. ^ Indio 2 - La rivolta (1991), Archivio del cinema Italiano
  73. ^ Goldweber, David Elroy (2015). Claws & Saucers: Science Fiction, Horror, and Fantasy Film 1902–1982: A Complete Guide. Lulu Press, Inc. p. 279. ISBN 9781312288034.[permanent dead link]
  74. ^ Fabris, Angela (2018). Kaleidoskop Literatur: Zur Ästhetik literarischer Texte von Dante bis zur Gegenwart. Festschrift für Cornelia Klettke zum 60. Geburtstag (in German). Frank & Timme GmbH. p. 712. ISBN 9783732905034.
  75. ^ "Margheriti!". YouTube. 27 May 2011. Archived from the original on 11 December 2021. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  76. ^ Sharf, Zack (26 July 2019). "'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood': Tarantino's 'Inglourious Basterds' Easter Egg Explained". IndieWire. Retrieved 2 August 2021.

Sources

  • Curti, Roberto (2013). Italian Crime Filmography, 1968–1980. McFarland. ISBN 978-0786469765.
  • Curti, Roberto (2015). Italian Gothic Horror Films, 1957-1969. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476619897.
  • Curti, Roberto (2016). Diabolika: Supercriminals, Superheroes and the Comic Book Universe in Italian Cinema. Midnight Marquee Press. ISBN 978-1-936168-60-6.
  • Curti, Roberto (2017). Italian Gothic Horror Films, 1970–1979. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476629605.
  • Curti, Roberto (2019). Italian Gothic Horror Films, 1980-1989. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476672434.
  • Fischer, Dennis (2011). Science Fiction Film Directors, 1895-1998. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0786485055.
  • Grant, Kevin (2011). Any Gun Can Play. Fab Press. ISBN 9781903254615.
  • Kinnard, Roy; Crnkovich, Tony (2017). Italian Sword and Sandal Films, 1908-1990. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476662916.
  • Paul, Louis (2005). Italian Horror Film Directors. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-8749-3.