In the dark of night, a man in blue coveralls and carrying a long narrow case slips into the side door of a movie theater. He makes his way to a service elevator and heads up to the roof. Once there he walks across and enters a door that takes him down several stairs and to the projection booth. He opens up his case and pulls out a bolt-action rifle. In the theater below a mob boss and his wise guys sit watching a Swedish skin flick, unaware that a gun is pointing at them from above.

I won’t spoil how things play out, but the scene is an explosive start to writer-director’s Fernando Di Leo’s “The Boss” (which was also released as “Wipeout!”). Everything about it, from its conception to its execution, emphasizes Di Leo’s skill and tenacity as a genre filmmaker. It’s bloody and brutal and instantly sets the tone for this violent and sometimes sleazy poliziottesco crime noir.

“The Boss” is considered the be the third film in Di Leo’s Milieu Trilogy following “Caliber 9” and “The Italian Connection”, both from 1972. The killer in the above described scene is Nick Lanzetta (played by the late Henry Silva). He’s a hitman working for Don Giuseppe Daniello (Claudio Nicastro). Don Giuseppe has been a father figure to Nick, taking him in off the streets and raising him as one of his own. Now Don Giuseppe runs a crew in Palermo with Nick as his trusted right-hand-man.

While taking out the rival boss at the movie theater may have solved some problems, it also opened up others. A gangster named Cocchi (Pier Paolo Capponi) takes charge of what’s left of the dead Don’s crew and is intent on revenge. He has some men kidnap Don Giuseppe’s nympho daughter Rina (Antonia Santilli). As expected this sends Don Giuseppe into a panic. He wants Nick to find and rescue Rina but is told to stand down by the regional boss, Don Corrasco (Richard Conte). He’s an old-school Sicilian who detests Calabrians. Still he doesn’t want to start a full-blown gang war as too much noise would catch the attention of the big bosses in Rome.

But soon Nick finds himself caught in the middle. Corrasco wants him to keep an eye on Giuseppe to make sure he doesn’t make a deal with the kidnappers that would threaten the family. Giuseppe wants him to help get Rina back without alerting Corrasco. Like most good spaghetti gangster movies, a slew of characters are introduced and few are left standing at the end. Allegiances form, friends turn on friends, enemies get their comeuppances.

There are several interesting variables that add some cool layers to the story. Gianni Garko is terrific as Commissioner Torri, a dirty cop who’s impossible to read. And Marino Masé is really good playing Pignataro, a mob enforcer who helps Nick once the heat turns up. Both are crucial pieces of the story that keep things moving in unexpected directions. Not so good is Rina, who only seems there to serve as a plot device and to give the audience a woman to ogle. She’s a flimsy character and a distraction that often pulls us away from the good stuff.

Overlooking that one poorly judged annoyance, “The Boss” is a captivating mob thriller full of rich and fascinating characters and with a good eye for gritty gangland action. The story may have the markings of a conventional mob tale, but Di Leo’s shrewdly absorbing script and direction brings a fresh feel to a pretty straightforward genre flick. It’s propulsive and energetic, eventually reaching a bullet-riddled payoff that’s both fitting and satisfying.

VERDICT – 3.5 STARS