Massimo Dallamano

Massimo Dallamano
Born(1917-04-17)17 April 1917
Milan, Lombardy, Italy
Died4 November 1976(1976-11-04) (aged 59)
Rome, Lazio, Italy
Other names
  • Max Dillman
  • Max Dillmann
  • Jack Dalmas
Occupation(s)Film director, cinematographer, screenwriter

Massimo Dallamano (17 April 1917 – 4 November 1976) was an Italian cinematographer, film director, and screenwriter. He is best known for his work on Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy, and for directing several giallo and poliziotteschi films during the 1970s.

Life and career

Born in Milan, Dallamano began in the 1940s as cameraman for documentaries and commercials, and after the war he became a cinematographer, specializing in adventure films.[1]

In 1959, he co-directed the travel documentary Tierra mágica, which was nominated for the Golden Bear at the 9th Berlin International Film Festival. He was also active in Spanish cinema. He shot Francisco Rovira Beleta's film Los Tarantos, which was nominated for Best Foreign-Language Film at the 36th Academy Awards.

His best known work as a cinematographer were Sergio Leone's landmark Spaghetti Westerns A Fistful of Dollars (1964) and For a Few Dollars More (1965).[1] Christopher Frayling notes Dallamano's contributions to those films' distinctive visual style, including the use of widescreen compositions and Renaissance-style lighting effects in close-ups.[2]

In 1967, he made his narrative film directorial debut with another Spaghetti Western, Bandidos. He went on to direct a dozen more films, including poliziotteschi, giallo, horror, and erotic films. His films include A Black Veil for Lisa (1968) with Luciana Paluzzi and John Mills, Dorian Gray (1970) with Helmut Berger, What Have You Done to Solange? (1972), What Have They Done to Your Daughters? (1974), and The Cursed Medallion (1975).[1]

Throughout his career, Dallamano was sometimes credited under the aliases Max Dillman (also spelled Dillmann) and Jack Dalmas.

Death

Dallamano died at age 59 in a car accident, several months after the release of his film Colt 38 Special Squad (1976).[3][4] His next film was intended to be Red Rings of Fear, which was ultimately directed by Alberto Negrin. Dallamano retained a posthumous screenwriting credit.

Select filmography

Title Year Credited as Notes Ref(s)
Director Screenwriter Cinematographer
Herod the Great 1959 Yes [5][6]
The Cossacks 1960 Yes [7]
Love and Larceny Yes [8]
Constantine and the Cross 1961 Yes [7]
Queen of the Nile Yes [8]
Pontius Pilate 1962 Yes [9]
Duello nel Texas 1963 Yes [8]
Los Tarantos Yes [10]
A Fistful of Dollars 1964 Yes [11]
Bullets Don't Argue Yes [12][13]
For a Few Dollars More 1965 Yes [14]
The Mona Lisa Has Been Stolen 1966 Yes [8]
Bandidos 1967 Yes Yes [15][16][17]
A Black Veil for Lisa 1968 Yes [18]
Venus in Furs 1969 Yes [19]
Dorian Gray 1970 Yes Yes [20]
What Have You Done to Solange? 1972 Yes Yes [21]
Super Bitch 1973 Yes Yes [22]
What Have They Done to Your Daughters? 1974 Yes Yes [23][24]
The Cursed Medallion 1975 Yes [25]
Colt 38 Special Squad 1976 Yes Yes [26]
Red Rings of Fear 1978 Yes Posthumous release [27]

Sources

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c Marco Giusti (2007). Dizionario del western all'italiana. Mondadori, 2007. ISBN 978-88-04-57277-0.
  2. ^ Sir Christopher Frayling, A Fistful of Dollars audio commentary (Blu-ray version). Retrieved on 15 September 2014.
  3. ^ Marco Giusti. Stracult. Dizionario dei film italiani. Frassinelli, 2004.
  4. ^ Jane, Ian (June 22, 2006). "Colt 38 Special Squad". DVD Talk.
  5. ^ Kinnard & Crnkovich 2017, p. 98.
  6. ^ Kinnard & Crnkovich 2017, p. 99.
  7. ^ a b Kinnard & Crnkovich 2017, p. 41.
  8. ^ a b c d "Massimo Dallamano – Cinematographer". mubi.com. Retrieved 2025-01-09.
  9. ^ Kinnard & Crnkovich 2017, p. 130.
  10. ^ MYmovies.it. "Con odio e con amore". MYmovies.it (in Italian). Retrieved 2025-01-09.
  11. ^ Curti 2016, p. 192.
  12. ^ "Die letzten Zwei vom Rio Bravo". Filmportal.de (in German). Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  13. ^ "Las pistolas no discuten [Le pistole non discutono] (1964)". Archiviodelcinemaitaliano.it (in Italian). Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  14. ^ Curti 2016, p. 193.
  15. ^ Grant 2011, p. 443.
  16. ^ Grant 2011, p. 444.
  17. ^ "Bandidos (1967)". Archiviodelcinemaitaliano.it. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  18. ^ Curti 2022, p. 146.
  19. ^ "Venus im Pelz". Filmportal.de (in German). Archived from the original on February 20, 2019. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  20. ^ "Das Bildnis des Dorian Gray". Filmportal.de (in German). Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  21. ^ "Das Geheimnis der grünen Stecknadel". Filmportal.de (in German). Archived from the original on November 30, 2015. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  22. ^ Curti 2013, p. 101.
  23. ^ Curti 2013, p. 124.
  24. ^ Curti 2013, p. 125.
  25. ^ Curti 2017, p. 144.
  26. ^ Curti 2013, p. 165.
  27. ^ "Red Rings of Fear". Filmportal.de (in German). Archived from the original on February 20, 2019. Retrieved February 19, 2019.

References


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