The 10th Victim

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

That old phrase "you always hurt the one you love" takes on a new meaning in this satiric comedy. In the 21st Century, government and the private sector have come together to create a solution to human aggression by giving it a profitable outlet. "The Big Hunt" is a popular worldwide game show in which contestants, identified as "Hunter" and "Victim" and chosen at random by computer, chase one another around the globe; the player who can kill his counterpart is declared the winner and moves on to another match. After ten wins, the player is retired from the game and gets a cash prize of one million dollars, but few have managed that feat. The sponsors of "The Big Hunt" (a tea company known to give contestants bonuses for mentioning their slogans on camera) bring together two current champions for a special match. Marcello Polletti (Marcello Mastroianni) plays the game for money after a nasty and expensive break-up with his wife, and he's just completed his sixth round. Marcello is the victim and is being pursued by Caroline Meredith (Ursula Andress), a beautiful but highly skilled hunter who after nine wins isn't about to let Marcello slip through her fingers. However, as Marcello and Caroline warily follow one another (she posing as a television reporter and he as the leader of a cult of sun worshipers), they become infatuated with one another, a development that interferes with the game in unexpected ways. Directed by Elio Petri, La Decima Vittima (aka The 10th Victim) has earned a loyal cult following among film buffs for its pointed humor and the romantic chemistry between Marcello Mastroianni and Ursula Andress, who were briefly an item off screen. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: All
• Number of Discs: 1
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 (Theatre Wide Screen)
• Audio: Dolby Digital Stereo
• Screen: Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
• Features:
  • Theatrical trailer
  • Talent bios

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Marcello Mastroianni - Marcello Polletti
       Ursula Andress - Caroline Meredith
       Elsa Martinelli - Olga
       Massimo Serato - Lawyer
       Salvo Randone - Professor
       Mickey Knox - Chet
       Richard Armstrong - Cole
       Walter Williams - Martin
       Evi Rigano - Victim
       Milo Quesada - Rudi
       Anita Sanders - Relaxatorium Girl
       George Wang - Chinese Assailant

• Director:

  Elio Petri

• Producer:

  Carlo Ponti

• Screenwriter:

  Ennio Flaiano, Tonino Guerra, Elio Petri, Giorgio Salvioni

• Cinematographer:

  Gianni Di Venanzo

• Composer (Music Score):

  Piero Piccioni

• Editor:

  Ruggero Mastroianni

• Art Director:

  Piero Poletto

• Set Designer:

  Dario Michell

• Costume Designer:

  Giulio Coltellacci

• Choreography:

  Gino Landi

• Short Story Author:

  Robert Sheckley

REVIEW:

• Elio Petri's La Decima Vittima (aka The 10th Victim) is an unlikely combination of satire, science fiction, cat-and-mouse thriller and dark-humored romantic comedy, and it manages to work quite well on all these levels thanks to Petri's light but pointed touch and a pair of engaging performances by Marcello Mastroianni and Ursula Andress. Set in that Not Too Distant Future that was so common in 1960s sci-fi, Petri gives this story of a game of death (a notion that had been familiar since The Most Dangerous Game in 1932) a fresh touch with a striking visual style (thanks to Piero Poletto's production design, Gianni Di Venanzo's camerawork and Giulio Coltellacci's costumes) that manages to be sleek, colorful and just a bit ridiculous all at once, and the narrative style follows the images as the two handsome killers are surrounded by bumbling television producers intent on shoehorning a sponsor's message into the show at every opportunity. Mastroianni and Andress also have the intelligence to underplay the film's humor (Mastroianni just about defines laconic in his performance), and they have a powerful onscreen chemistry that makes their attraction to one another seem plausible despite the incredibly unlikely circumstances. (It certainly doesn't hurt that Andress is appallingly beautiful in this role -- who wouldn't be smitten with her?) And while suspense takes a back seat to satire and curious romantic byplay in The 10th Victim, Petri juggles the various elements with enough dexterity that the false endings seem genuine (at least for a moment) and the ending is a genuine surprise. The 10th Victim may well have been the smartest and most original offshoot of the European spy boom of the 1960s (most of the plot elements are there, even if the spies are not), and it's still sharp, sexy and engaging entertainment more than forty years after it was released; the rise of reality television has made it all the more timely, though thankfully no one has yet tried to bring "The Big Hunt" to the small screen. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi