The latest film genre to receive the revival treatment is EuroCrime. Most famously drawn upon by filmmaker Quentin Tarantino in Grindhouse, Kill Bill and Jackie Brown, the ultra-low-budget, brutally violent Italian cop and gangster films ran rampant in Italy in the 1970's to compensate for the country's lack of commercial television and to entertain audiences who went to the movies multiple times a week. A few gems of the genre are presented by University of Tampa and Sunscreen Film Fest during "Eurocrime Invasion Tampa 2008: The Italian Cop and Gangster Films That Ruled The '70s." The fest opens Friday with documentarian Mike Malloy, who gives a talk and hosts a preview of his new doc, Eurocrime!. Screenings of Rome Armed to the Teeth and The Italian Connection follow. On Saturday, a Q&A with Malloy and EuroCrime actor Chris Mitchum is sandwiched in between screenings of two of Mitchum's films — Ricco and Summertime Killer. An after party with drinks, food and special guests follows at Gaspar's Grotto. EuroCrime Fest, Oct. 3-4, 7 p.m.-midnight Fri., 2-7 p.m. Sat., Reeves Theatre at UT, 401 W. Kennedy Blvd., Tampa, 813-253-3333, free; and EuroCrime Fest After Party, Sat., Oct. 4, 8 p.m.-midnight, 1805 E. Seventh Ave., Ybor City, free.
This article appears in Oct 1-7, 2008.