The easiest way of describing The Iron Prefect is this is The Untouchables of Italy. Both films are based on actual people who had to battle mobsters in areas dominated by crime. Eliot Ness was arrived in Chicago in order to break the underworld empire of Al Capone in 1930. Before that happened, Cesare Mori arrived on the island of Sicily to bust up the Mafia in 1925. Both men couldn’t trust local law enforcement because those that weren’t secretly on the payroll of mobsters were being blackmailed to cooperate. They had a tough time put together teams with people they could trust in their battles against the underworld. We’re familiar with Eliot Nes’ battle thanks to the original TV series and the movie with Kevin Costner. Cesare Mori is a bit obscure. Our cinematic memories of Sicily and the Mafia is when Michael Corleone hides out there in The Godfather. But after you watch The Iron Prefect, you’ll see Mori is as badass as Ness.
Prefect Mori (A Pistol For Ringo‘s Giuliano Gemma) and his wife ride a train into Sicily. He’s been appointed by the government to wipe out the hold the Mafia. Under the cover of night, he jumps off the train to meet with rural farmers who are rather reluctant to talk to him. The Mafia is in control of everything from politicians, the cops and even the priests. Nothing is safe from them. Mori learns this fast when he returns to the train station to discover that the train hasn’t departed the station because a local mobster boss is holding it for him. This “nice” gesture show Mori how much power the mob boss has. Soon after taking office, Mori gets brought back to the farm where everyone has been wiped out. The local cops want to blame bandits, but the farmers and families have no money to steal. This is the mob boss sending a message that cooperation will not be tolerated. Instead of scaring him back to Rome, Mori becomes even more resolved to bust up to criminals running the island. He wants to prove to the poor of the area that he’s looking out for them. He attempts to befriend a local woman Anna Torrisi (The Pink Panther‘s Claudia Cardinale) which might lead to temptation since his wife isn’t happy being dragged down to the dangerous island.
There is a big difference between Ness and Mori. Ness was sent by the government to stop illegal activities. Prohibition was in full effect and Ness was busting up illegal booze operations run by Capone. Mori was in Sicily to shut down the Mafia by a Fascist government run by Benito Mussolini. They were tired of mobsters taking money without sending a cut up to Rome. The focus of the film is Mori cleaning up the island and not really about the nature of Mussolini’s government. Mori sets his mission to stop the violence and corruption. He seems annoyed by the glory hogging fascist government reps. Giuliano Gemma plays Mori as a guy who is always on alert. This is true since at any moment, he could be taken out by a mafia hitman or even one his own police officers under orders from the local Godfather.
I do wonder if Brian De Palma watched The Iron Prefect before making the cinematic adaptation of The Untouchables a decade later. There’s a great scene here with Mori on horseback busting fugitives that reminiscent to Ness and his crew raid of rum runners. There’s also a great montage when Mori and his troops look for hiding spaces in the walls around a Mafia stronghold. The biggest connection between the two films is soundtrack composer Ennio Morricone. He scored both films and musically unites Ness and Mori in their fight against criminal bosses. While The Iron Prefect won Italy’s version of The Oscar for Best Picture, the movie wasn’t put up for the country’s Best Foreign Language nominee. This cut into its ability to play the art houses in America although Jimmy Carter did run the film in the White House.
The Iron Prefect is a great film. The movie shows how Mori did his best to straighten out the outlaw island that gave birth to the Mafia. This is The Untouchables Italian Style and a bit more.
The video is 1.85:1 anamorphic. The 1080p transfer brings out the rough terrain of the area controlled by the Mafia. The audio is LPCM mono in both Italian and English. Since the movie was made in Italy, the soundtracks were put together in the ADR booth so either version is “original” to release.
Booklet with an essay about the real Cesare Mori.
Pasquale Squitieri and Guliano Gemma (34:49) was originally made in 2009 with the director and star discussing what it took to make the film. Turns out they shot only a few scenes in Sicily. Everything else was created in Rome.
Domenico Monetti (40:15) shares his insights from his biography on Pasquale Squitieri. The Iron Prefect was both a box office and critical success for the director.
Alex Cox (11:28) gives us the lifestory of Guliano Gemma. The director of Repo Man and author of 10,000 Ways to Die: A Director’s Take on the Italian Western, charts how the actor became a major star in the Spaghetti Western genre. The Iron Prefect is one of his greatest performances post-western. He goes into how Gemma played the character. He recounts his encounter with the actor.
Trailer (3:28) shows Gemma on horseback taking on the Mafia.
Radiance Films present The Iron Prefect. Directed by Pasquale Squitieri. Screenplay by Ugo Pirro. Starring: Giuliano Gemma, Claudia Cardinale, Stefano Satta Flores, Francisco Rabal, Lina Sastri, Massimo Mollica & Rik Battaglia. Running Time: 118 minutes. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: July 18, 2023.
