The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 6, 2023

Note: This version of this film is available on Blu-ray as part of Severin's Violent Streets: The Umberto Lenzi/Tomas Milian Collection box set.

In one of several worthwhile supplements Severin has aggregated for Violent Streets, commentators Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson make the case that director Umberto Lenzi may not have achieved the renown of some of his contemporaries at least in part perhaps due to the fact that, at least according to Howarth and Thompson, his directorial style wasn't "flashy" enough, though the fact that Howarth's book about Lenzi includes the word kinetic in its title might subliminally undercut this thesis, one way or the other. There is a certain stolid quality to some of Lenzi's work, to be sure, but there are also at least moments of flourishes, but one way or the other, when you have a star like Tomas Milián snarling in front of the camera, how much additional "style" do you really need? Milián is a near feral presence in all five films Severin has aggregated in this appealing new collection culled from Lenzi's rather impressively long filmography. Some of the supplementary interviews with Lenzi included on the various discs in this set might suggest that his relationship with Milián may not have always been smooth sailing, so to speak, and in a way I was reminded (perhaps only due to it very recently passing through my review queue courtesy of a bonus feature on Arrow's release of Black Sunday) some remarks by John Frankenheimer speaking to his evidently intermittently stormy relationship with Burt Lancaster, another leading man with a somewhat feral presence. One way or the other, much as with the Frankenheimer - Lancaster collaborations, Lenzi and Milián formed a viscerally compelling symbiotic unit for whatever reason, and the five films collected here offer more than abundant proof of the energy the duo brought to some admittedly at times otherwise pedestrian efforts. Severin has perhaps sweetened the pot for a certain demographic by including soundtrack CDs with some of the films.

All of the discs in Violent Streets contain various interviews with Umberto Lenzi (some discs offer more than one interview with the director), and it soon becomes obvious in watching these discussions that Lenzi was not one to suffer fools gladly, and was really never shy about offering his opinion about his collaborators and perhaps especially about his actors. Let's just say that at least some of his passing comments suggest that his relationship with Tomas Milián was often fraught and on the rocky side, but it's evident that Lenzi had at least something approaching respect for Milián. The same may not be true, or at least in the same degree, with regard to John Saxon, as Lenzi in an interview states overtly that Saxon isn't actor enough to play an Italian (whatever that means). This may account for the fact that The Cynic, The Rat and the Fist offers the venerable American performer as, well, an American.

You might be able to qualify the character Milián as any of the three titular types, but one way or the other, he's another unrepentant bad guy in this one, in this particular case bearing the interesting nickname The Chinaman. What's kind of interesting about the cast is not necessarily either Milián or even Saxon, who portrays an over the top American crime boss named Frank Di Maggio (hey, maybe Italian American isn't the same as Italian), but the third leg of this pretty wobbly stool, "rogue cop" (as the back cover describes him) Leo Tanzi (Maurizio Merli), a character genre aficionados may recognize from other outings like Lenzi's own The Tough Ones. Tanzi was responsible for The Chinaman's imprisonment, and The Chinaman isn't too happy about that, as might be understandable, but the upshot is once The Chinaman is out and about seeking vengeance, he finds out he may not be the only one on such a quest.

As with several of the other films in the Violent Streets set, The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist has had a prior release on Blu-ray, in this case by 88 Films for the Region B market. Those interested in a detailed plot recap as well as reaction to the film are encouraged to read Svet Atanasov's The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist Blu-ray review of that version.

The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. As with several of the other films in the Violent Streets collection, the back cover of this disc doesn't provide a wealth of technical information, instead offering only a generic "scanned uncut in 2K from the original negative". Svet was pretty underwhelmed with the appearance of the 88 Films release, and while I haven't seen that version, even a cursory glance at the screenshots Svet uploaded to accompany his review show a kind of harshly digital appearance, something that is commendably absent from this presentation. There is in fact a nicely organic texture courtesy of a natural looking grain field, and there is none of what looks to have been pretty aggressive sharpening that was applied to the 88 Films release. That release also looks a little artificially brightened and/or boosted to me, with a somewhat odd looking palette, all of which has been noticeably improved in this version. There are still some variations in color temperature and densities, and as with many of the other films in this set, there are still minor signs of age related wear and tear that have made it through the restoration gauntlet, but based on the lackluster earlier Blu-ray release, I'd say this is a striking improvement in overall quality.

The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist features DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono options in either English or Italian. This is another outing where the differences between the two tracks are pretty minimal, though that said, to my ears the English track is just slightly brighter sounding overall, to the point that it's maybe even just a bit brash sounding in the upper registers. Both tracks deliver problem free listening experiences that cleanly and clearly reproduce dialogue, score and effects. Optional English subtitles for both versions are available.

The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Merli vs. Milan (HD; 4:18) is an interview with director Umberto Lenzi. Subtitled in English.


• A Man of Action (HD; 10:11) is another interview (quite a bit older I'd say, based on his appearance an the Academy ratio presentation) with Umberto Lenzi. Subtitled in English.


• Me, Milan and Merli (HD; 19:33) is another archival interview with Umberto Lenzi. Subtitled in English.


• The Writer, the Director and the Actor (HD; 32:00) is an interview with screenwriter Dardano Sacchetti. Subtitled in English.


• Here Comes the Fist (HD; 8:37) is an interview with actor John Saxon.


• Trailer (HD; 3:41)


• A Soundtrack CD is included.

The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

In a way, it's a little hard to know who exactly you should be "rooting" for in this convoluted exercise in nasty behavior(s). The three principal cast members all chew the scenery with a great deal of energy, and the film is further buoyed by a fun score by Franco Micalizzi. Technical merits are generally solid and the supplements very enjoyable. Recommended.