Absolutely the worst movie.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Long haired, outcast hippie guy gets out of jail and is victimized by the mob. I love it. Somehow, some way, it took me years to see this one and it's ashame because it's definitely worthy of a spot on any Italian horror/crime fan's DVD shelf.Music is swanky, clothes are hippie, dubbing is atrocious. Castration scene near the end is especially sickening, definitely stands out as the 'gross out' moment in the movie. It surprised me; was not expecting it as it kind of comes out of nowhere...sure there's plenty of fighting and goofy kung fu prior in the film, but nothing like that! I loved it.Fans of Castellari or Fulci should enjoy this one! 5 out of 10, kids.

OK, here's the plan. I've been working my way through all the films IMDb has listed with the keyword Slasher. Can you tell I'm a fan? So, when I ran across this film, and look at the tagline and my screen-name...obviously I would be interested, and wow, what a piece of trash this turned out to be.I'll be generous and tell you the score was decent, occasionally the cinematography was creative, and it's violent. But, come on. Look at the poster/cover art listed on this site. And even the name alternative. It's got horror film written all over that. But this isn't a horror film in the least. The Italian actors in a B film do as best as you might expect, which I am fine with. But, seriously, I've seen Ed Wood and Andy Milligan films with better acting than what Chris Mitchum "executes" in this picture. I can't believe this guy was in 3, count them, 3 John Wayne movies before this one. He is awful. He may have improved, but his performance here totally killed what could have been a decent action/mobster/revenge flick. He is not the least bit intimidating anywhere in the painful 90 minutes. It's almost like he doesn't even want to be there and it's written all over his face the entire time as well as his half-hearted delivery. Utter vomit.The only, and I mean only, thing this movie really has going for it is a few nude scenes, lots of gunshot wounds, a decent fog-wrapped striptease on a car hood, and an up close and personal castration scene, which subsequently has said disembodied genitals shoved into the poor guy's mouth. But, don't be put off by how awesome that sounds. It's not even worth it for the other 90 minutes of yawns.

A young man named Ricco(Chris Mitchum)gets a year off his sentence after serving two years in prison, and quietly sets out to even a score against mafioso king Don Vito(Arthur Kennedy), the man responsible for murdering his mob boss father so that he could have control over the entire city. What erupts is a blood feud where many tragic casualties, innocents whose blood are shed, lie in the wake of Ricco and Vito's rivalry. Ricco finds an ally in an old friend of his father's niece, Scilla(Barbara Bouchet)..Scilla, at first, participates for kicks, but soon finds that she's in love with Ricco and realizes that his feud with Vito will only leave a lot of innocent people dead. Once Ricco gets mixed up with a crooked partner of Vito's, Cyrano(Eduardo Fajardo), once a pal of his father, there's no turning back. Diamonds, and collected dues of those benefactors for whom Vito "protects", soon play into matters as does Ricco's old squeeze, Rosa(Malisa Longo)now "property" of the Don. Vito cherishes Rosa, and anyone who dares even attempt to touch what is his will inherit a trip into his vat of acid. The climax is a shoot-out at Don Vito's factory with Ricco seeking revenge when those he loves are slain in horrific gang-land style fashion.Ultra violent crime thriller with Christopher Mitchum walking tall, saying only what needs to be said..like his father Robert, Chris doesn't overexert himself. He's quite the cool customer, approaching even the most violent situations with a laid-back calm staring down possible death at every turn. Kennedy inhibits the sadistic Don Vito as if born to play him..having portrayed villains in westerns with ease, playing the heavy in "Ricco" is a piece of cake. The true star of this film, besides Barbara Bouchet who always knows how to make a scene, is Malisa Longo as Rosa, who takes you completely away from the film immediately casting your eyes towards her. She's quite a feast to salivate over..the kind of sex kitten who would have you turning cart-wheels and barking like a dog. She's "to die for" and one does, but I certainly understand why one would risk the chance to bed her. Whether walking around in lingerie or bathing top-less, she's a tasty dish..no a gourmet meal. Matter of fact, she's the best part of the meal..she's the desirable dessert. I found that Mitchum and Bouchet had good chemistry and that both knew the wattage they carried on screen. Mitchum carries that effortless cool and Bouchet is so damn sexy, and knows it, I never questioned why I liked watching them together on screen. Bouchet even performs a nice little strip-tease for the viewer..thanks dear for providing another memorable scene(..like Bouchet hasn't provided ample memories already!)I can carry away into my fantasies.Getting away from the babes, I have to mention the castration scene. One fellow, Tony(Manuel Zarzo)can not resist Rosa's sexual advances(..given the situation, I can see why he succumbs to her wiles)and is caught by the Don. Tony fights three of the Don's goons before getting his privates sliced off with a knife..he then gets his penis and testicles shoved down his throat before being tossed in Vito's acid vat! If the opening scene where Ricco's father's face is shot in point-blank, then this gory sequence of events does. When it comes to subtlety, you'd better look elsewhere because the Italians always go for broke.

The title suggests that Cauldron of Death is going to be another Giallo-styled thriller (Italian marketing campaigns...), but it turns out that this film is actually a part of seventies Italy's other big export; the Dirty Harry-influenced cop flick! Cauldron of Death is a little more nasty than a lot of the genre, however, as it features plenty of grisly murders, including some unlucky victims that find themselves being thrown into a vat of acid, a la our featured criminals' favourite method of dealing with people that annoy them. The story doesn't actually focus on the police like a lot of these seventies Italian crime movies, and the centre of the plot is Rico; a young man recently released from jail and thirsty for revenge on the man that killed his father (which we see at the opening of the film). The guilty party is a mobster named Don Vito, and he's certainly an adversary to be reckoned with as Rico, two years since he was sentenced to jail, is forced to match wits and out everything on the line to get revenge on the vicious Don Vito.The film benefits from a good female duo. I'll watch anything that features the lovely Barbara Bouchet, and she doesn't disappoint here as we get treated to one of the best striptease scenes in Italian cinema! The film also features Malisa Longo, who adds to the eye candy. The men aren't bad either, as while Robert Mitchum's son Christopher is a little too naive looking for my liking; he still plays his part well. Arthur Kennedy rounds off a good central cast as the vicious Don Vito. Director Tulio Demicheli succeeds at generating a fetid atmosphere for the film to take place in, and the nasty death scenes certainly don't feel out of place considering the look and nature of the movie. The main problem with the film stems from the plotting. You'd be a fool to go into a cheapo seventies Italian thriller expecting a thoroughly well thought out plot; but this one veers off course a bit too often, and it can become distracting after a while. It's not a fatal problem; however, as Cauldron of Death is an entertaining and gritty little thriller that is well worth seeing if you can find it!