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Peter Maas has been the only interviewer allowed to see Joe Valachi, the Cosa Nostra's enemy #1. And since Valachi's written...
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THE VALACHI PAPERS
by Peter Maas ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 1968
Peter Maas has been the only interviewer allowed to see Joe Valachi, the Cosa Nostra's enemy #1. And since Valachi's written story (300,000 words) has been officially suppressed (to protect the guilty?) this will probably serve as the public record for those who couldn't follow the rather jumbled television testimony. Valachi talked after receiving the ""Kiss of Death""; he was unfairly (he says) marked by Vito Genovese who is still serving time but keeps his position as current overlord of the underworld. Valachi had been a loyal ""Family"" man since the rise to power in the '30's. He survived the Castellammarese War (Sicilians vs. Neopolitans), a bloodbath that left 60 bodies, and the later purges in which Luciano wiped out Maranzano, only to later get his in a chain of swallow the leader. The Mafia is now run by a commissione of 9 to 12 bosses across the country, which serves as controller or arbitration board for the 25-30 ""Families"" composed of up to 5,000 men. This explains the set-ups, the rules, the rituals and the brutal past. Along with the names (Joe Bananas to Albert Anastasia--particularly vicious) Mr. Valachi is himself quite a character. A lieutenant and official executor, he had his hand in every racket from numbers to racing; he's been knifed, shot and beaten up. He may well become a legitimately rich man with the help of the Papers, but there's one sure bet. . . he won't want to get out to spend it.
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Tv/streaming, collections, chaz's journal, great movies, contributors, the valachi papers.
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During the era of the Stalin purges, it was not enough that the offending party member be found guilty. No, he also had to confess his guilt in public, so there could be no suspicion that the party had erred. He not only had to be guilty, he had to be SEEN to be guilty. Something like this same moral assumption seems to lurk at the message level of "The Valachi Papers," an ambitious but not inspired movie about the mob.
Joe Valachi's papers themselves were transcribed from his appearances before congressional crime committees. They provided inside dope that excited our sneaky curiosity about the outfit. But on the other hand, there was some doubt about how much Valachi really knew; he was a chauffeur, errand boy and hit man - never a member of the high councils of organized crime. Were his stories about blood oaths the real stuff, or was he just making a good story better?
The difficulty of considering the syndicate from a worm's-eye view is one "The Valachi Papers" never quite comes to grips with. Since everything in the movie is supposedly true and told by Valachi in flashback, we have the spectacle of a minor hood constantly rubbing elbows with the big boys. At the celebrated Appalachian convention of the top bosses, for example, chauffeur Valachi is right there in the middle of things, hanging around in case anybody needs a ride.
The traditional 1930s gangster movie ended with the prison doors banging shut; gangsters got to have all of the fun during the movie, but the ending had to be downbeat as they prepared to pay their debts to society. "The Valachi Papers," as I've hinted, seems to be trying for some more uplifting conclusion. The movie begins with Valachi ( Charles Bronson ) in prison and being debriefed by a government agent. The movie is told in flashback as Valachi's memories. The government agent doesn't seem as concerned with punishing Valachi as with getting him to admit the error of his ways.
Valachi retains a touching faith in the Cosa Nostra; his loyalty is to it, and he seems blind to the advantages it took of him. The G-man wants to open his eyes. "They castrated your best friend and left him in agony, forcing you to kill him, and you feel no resentment?" the agent asks him at one point, and Valachi sort of shrugs his shoulders. You live by the code or you die by it.
The whole thrust of the movie is to change Valachi's image of himself. After an unsuccessful suicide attempt, he determines to live out of "sheer spite." If the mob has a $100,000 contract out on him, then he's damned if he'll kill himself and save them the money. Terence Young , who directed the movie, and Stephen Geller, who wrote it, seem to think that if they can show Valachi repenting the error of his ways, they have made a statement of some importance.
But so what? The movie's life is in a series of fairly nice period pieces, some strong action sequences and the interesting Bronson performance. For the rest, it declines to be a traditional gangster movie and cannot approach the psychological or narrative death of " The Godfather ." So we're not involved enough to really care that much about Joe Valachi, and the movie becomes a series of high points on the road to a labored conclusion.
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.
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The Valachi Papers Paperback – March 18 2003
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New York Times Bestseller
“As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." — New York Times Book Review
The First Inside Account of the Mafia
In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi. Daring to break the Mob's code of silence for the first time, Valachi detailed the organization of organized crime from the capos , or bosses, of every Family, to the hit men who "clipped" rivals and turncoats. With a phenomenal memory for names, dates, addresses, phone numbers—and where the bodies were buried—Joe Valachi provided the chilling facts that led to the arrest and conviction of America's major crime figures.
The rest is history.
Never again would the Mob be protected by secrecy. For the Mafia, Valachi's name would become synonymous with betrayal. But his stunning exposé broke the back of America's Cosa Nostra and stands today as the classic about America's Mob, a fascinating tale of power and terror, big money, crime. . . and murder.
Print length 304 pages
Language English
Publication date March 18 2003
Dimensions 13.49 x 1.73 x 20.32 cm
ISBN-10 006050742X
ISBN-13 978-0060507428
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“A highly readable narrative of the life and times of Joseph Valachi. . . it is a story littered with bodies and unsolved crimes, betrayals and beatings, oaths, ritual and revenge.” — Newsweek
“A classic on crime. A fine book, which will be read whenever people are concerned about the erosions of a democracy by organized crime.” — Life
From the Back Cover
Never again would the Mob be protected by secrecy. For the Mafia, Valachi's name would become synonymous with betrayal. But his stunning exposé. broke the back of America's Cosa Nostra and stands today as the classic about America's Mob, a fascinating tale of power and terror, big money, crime ... and murder.
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New York Times Bestseller
“As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." — New York Times Book Review
The First Inside Account of the Mafia
In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi. Daring to break the Mob's code of silence for the first time, Valachi detailed the organization of organized crime from the capos , or bosses, of every Family, to the hit men who "clipped" rivals and turncoats. With a phenomenal memory for names, dates, addresses, phone numbers—and where the bodies were buried—Joe Valachi provided the chilling facts that led to the arrest and conviction of America's major crime figures.
The rest is history.
Never again would the Mob be protected by secrecy. For the Mafia, Valachi's name would become synonymous with betrayal. But his stunning exposé broke the back of America's Cosa Nostra and stands today as the classic about America's Mob, a fascinating tale of power and terror, big money, crime. . . and murder.
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New York Times Bestseller
“As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." — New York Times Book Review
The First Inside Account of the Mafia
In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi. Daring to break the Mob's code of silence for the first time, Valachi detailed the organization of organized crime from the capos , or bosses, of every Family, to the hit men who "clipped" rivals and turncoats. With a phenomenal memory for names, dates, addresses, phone numbers—and where the bodies were buried—Joe Valachi provided the chilling facts that led to the arrest and conviction of America's major crime figures.
The rest is history.
Never again would the Mob be protected by secrecy. For the Mafia, Valachi's name would become synonymous with betrayal. But his stunning exposé broke the back of America's Cosa Nostra and stands today as the classic about America's Mob, a fascinating tale of power and terror, big money, crime. . . and murder.
About the Author
Praise for….
“A highly readable narrative of the life and times of Joseph Valachi. . . it is a story littered with bodies and unsolved crimes, betrayals and beatings, oaths, ritual and revenge.” — Newsweek
“A classic on crime. A fine book, which will be read whenever people are concerned about the erosions of a democracy by organized crime.” — Life
True Crime / Organized Crime
True Crime / Historical
Biography & Autobiography / Historical
True Crime / Espionage
Biography & Autobiography / Criminals & Outlaws
History / Americas (North, Central, South, West Indies)
Gangster Joe Valachi is a marked man in the same joint where mob boss Don Vito Genovese is imprisoned and he's forced to co-operate with the DA in exchange for protection. Gangster Joe Valachi is a marked man in the same joint where mob boss Don Vito Genovese is imprisoned and he's forced to co-operate with the DA in exchange for protection. Gangster Joe Valachi is a marked man in the same joint where mob boss Don Vito Genovese is imprisoned and he's forced to co-operate with the DA in exchange for protection.
Terence Young
Stephen Geller
Massimo De Rita
Charles Bronson
Lino Ventura
Jill Ireland
48 User reviews
37 Critic reviews
Top cast 45
Joe Valachi
Vito Genovese
Maria Reina Valachi
Salvatore Maranzano
(as Gerald O'Loughlin)
Gaetano Reina
Albert Anastasia
Letizia Reina
Lucky Luciano
Tony Bender
Giuseppe 'Joe the Boss' Masseria
(as Alessandro Sperlì)
Federal Investigator
Massimo De Rita (uncredited)
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
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Did you know
Trivia In return for using the penitentiary grounds of the Sing Sing Correctional Facility, the production made a large contribution to the prison's recreation fund.
Goofs During the chase scene which takes place during the 1920s in New York, a car goes into the river and in the background the twin towers of the World Trade Center under construction can be clearly seen. This is one of the most famous period reconstruction mistakes in film history.
Tony Bender : "Cut it off!" Bender to his two henchman as they grab Gap to get a "present" for Don Vito's girlfriend.
Alternate versions To receive an 'X' certificate the UK cinema version received heavy cuts to scenes of violence including the castration scene, bloody shootings, and the meat hook killing. Video and DVD releases restore the cuts.
Connections Featured in Valachi: The Violent Era (1972)
User reviews 48
claudio_carvalho
Dec 20, 2014
How long is The Valachi Papers? Powered by Alexa
December 7, 1972 (France)
Die Valachi-Papiere
New York City, New York, USA
Dino De Laurentiis Company
Euro-France Films
See more company credits at IMDbPro
$5,000,000 (estimated)
Technical specs
Runtime 2 hours 5 minutes
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Review: The Valachi Papers
Tina Film and TV , Reviews
Blu-ray: The Valachi Papers (1972)
In the early 1960s he testified to court that there was such a thing as a mafia in America after being given the ‘kiss of death’ by his mob boss in prison. Valachi is taken into FBI custody to give up names and deeds of mob bosses, and in return he’s kept in solitary. The story is told mostly in flashback (older Bronson with grey hair/younger Bronson with black hair).
Now Charles Bronson was never really what I’d call an ‘actor’, to me he’s more of a hard-man action star. So apart from the odd shooting, Bronson does show his acting chops in this film. He’s not miscast, but… he isn’t quite ‘right’. If the film was remade now they’d have Leonardo Di Caprio playing him.
The main problem with it apart from many of the actors are obviously dubbed (because they’re speaking Italian, though you can watch this version in either English or Italian) is that it’s a bit boring. I found myself wishing something would happen as it just sort of drones on.
It was made around the same time as The Godfather and the comparison is glaring right down to a fish being placed on a dead mobster. Perhaps it’s saving grace is the extras on this package. Its interesting to see the real Valachi in court.
INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES
High Definition remaster
Original English and Italian mono soundtracks
Audio commentary with film historian Paul Talbot, author of Bronson’s Loose! The Making of the ‘Death Wish’ Films and Bronson’s Loose Again!
In the Make-up Room (2021, 18 mins): celebrated make-up artist Giannetto De Rossi recalls his time working on The Valachi Papers
Reviewing the Evidence (2021, 35 mins) screenwriter Stephen Geller shares personal anecdotes about the production
Valachi: The Violent Era (1972, 7 mins): archival making-of documentary with on-set interviews with director Terence Young and actor Charles Bronson
On-set footage (1972, 2 mins): rare behind-the-scenes material capturing the filming of a key scene
The Valachi Hearings (1963, 18 mins): archival broadcast footage from Joseph Valachi’s original testimony to Senator John L McClellan’s congressional committee on organised crime
US theatrical trailer
German theatrical trailer
US radio spot
Image gallery: promotional and publicity materials
New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Newly translated English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
Limited edition exclusive 36-page booklet with a new essay by Pasquale Iannone, newspaper reports on Joseph Valachi’s criminal career, excerpts from the source book by Peter Maas, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits
UK premiere on Blu-ray
Limited edition of 3,000 copies
The Valachi Papres is released 25th January 2021.
Review by Tina from a disc kindly supplied by Powerhouse Films .
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The Valachi Papers
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Critics Reviews
Audience reviews, cast & crew.
Terence Young
Charles Bronson
Joe Valachi
Lino Ventura
Vito Genovese
Jill Ireland
Maria Reina Valachi
Michael Callan
Walter Chiari
, an engaging chronicle of his life of crime. Slarek is surprised just how faithful the film is to actual events, and learns a lot about Valachi, his criminal career and the making of the film from the excellent special features on Indicator's new Blu-ray.
) and he is credited with first popularising the term . A biography of Valachi written by journalist Peter Maas that was drawn in part from Valachi’s own memoirs was published in 1968 under the title . The rights to the book were purchased by famed Italian producer Dino De Laurentiis, and in 1972 the film adaptation landed in cinemas. Despite Maas’s belief that Valachi should be played by Marlon Brando, De Laurentiis picked rising superstar Charles Bronson for the role.
The film opens as the middle-aged Valachi arrives at the prison in which Vito Genovese (Lino Ventura) is being held and is prevented from approaching his former Don. When he foils the aforementioned assassination attempt (here by three men) and later kills the wrong guy, he is finally granted an audience with Don Vito, who is unimpressed by Valachi’s insistence that he is not an informer and gives him the mafioso kiss of death, a curse that Valachi defiantly returns in kind. As far as I’m aware, this is the only time you’ll see Charles Bronson kiss another man in a movie. Convinced he is a dead man if he doesn’t take action, he agrees to go into protective custody and break the Mafia’s code of silence by revealing what he knows about the organisation and its dealings to investigating FBI agent Ryan (Gerald O'Loughlin).
The story of Valachi’s mafia career then unfolds as a series of flashback stories related by Valachi to Ryan, an appropriate structure for a film based on a book that drew heavily on Valachi’s own unpublished memoirs. This does mean that Bronson is required to age a few decades during the course of the film, and this is the one area that you’ll have to cut the movie some slack. Bronson had one of those weather-beaten faces that probably never looked young even when he was in his teens, and despite some subtle prosthetics when he’s playing a man only a few years older than he was at the time, the key difference between the 20-something Valachi who first joins the mob and the 59-year-old man who testifies at the Justice Department hearing is that his initially black hair turns grey.
An almost text-book example of a solid and workmanlike film, ticks all the biographical gangster movie boxes without bringing that special something to the table that so distinguished and its remarkable sequel. It’s efficiently and sometimes breezily directed by Terence Young (he of the early Bond movies) and an enjoyable cast is peppered with actors who really look the part, a handy offshoot of being an Italian co-production whose filming was split between New York and Rome. It’s worth noting that the match between the two shoots is largely seamless – it took this disc's commentary track to confirm when exteriors shot in one country cut to studio sets in another, and to even reveal which interior locations were Italian rather than American. It was also though the commentary that I learned how faithful to the facts the film manages to be for much of its running time, albeit with a few omissions and name-changes for legal reasons and a little artistic licence taken to add a some extra spice to scenes that for the most part would have worked fine without it.
Coming to just a days after covering Eureka’s Blu-ray release of Richard Fleischer’s – another post- , mafia-themed gangster movie – also delivered a share of small surprises. Despite being released a year before Fleischer’s film, Young’s is considerably more violent (or should that be more bloody?) and includes a castration scene that, while not explicit (glad of that one, frankly), is still strong stuff for its day and apparently prompted its share of walk-outs on the film’s release. One of my few small gripes with was that its three featured crime families felt as if they consisted of only a handful of men apiece, and that’s certainly not the case with . In an apparently faithful recreation of a banquet at which Don Salvatore Maranzano (Joseph Wiseman) addresses all of the New York families in his new role as the Boss of Bosses, the sheer number of attendees gives you an idea of the considerable size and reach the New York Mafia at the peak of its power. And while Scott Harrison, in his audio commentary on the Eureka disc, notes that some of the interior locations of are more opulent than the post- norm, manages to outshine that film on this score, another advantage of shooting part of the film in Rome. If there’s a weakness here it’s that Valachi’s darker side has been swept under the carpet somewhat in service of a more sympathetic screen incarnation, and to avoid tarnishing the lead actor’s star image, of course. Here Valachi only kills once out of fear for his life and again later to put a horribly injured friend out of his misery, whereas the real Valachi carried out 33 mafia-ordered murders. I have a feeling it would take a filmmaker and lead actor of exceptional skill to sell that man to the paying public as a likable lead.
Whether Bronson is ideal casting as Valachi is up for a debate. He certainly has the right tough guy look and physique, but he’s not exactly a ringer for the man he is playing – my pick for the role would have been Lee J. Cobb, though the problem of de-aging him in this pre-digital age would have been no easier. That said, Bronson does a decent job here and is certainly chattier than his taciturn norm, though his finest moment is still a silent one, a look of convincingly painful anguish at the sight of the aforementioned castration. I will admit that I originally thought that Joseph Wiseman’s colourful Italian accent as Don Salvatore had a whiff of Super Mario about it, but once again the commentary track was on hand to put me straight, revealing that Wiseman had studied recordings of the real Salvatore Maranzano’s voice and speech patterns and had accurately reproduced them in the film. Lino Ventura makes for a suitably imposing Vito Genovese and several of his soldiers and compatriots are nicely cast and played, and few will be surprised to learn that Jill Ireland is on board as Valachi’s love interest, Maria, a role that was doubtless (mis-) cast at the insistence of her husband, Mr. Bronson.
I enjoyed but my appreciation of it definitely grew after delving into the true-life story on which it was based and discovering how closely the film adheres to the known facts. It moves at a steady lick, boasts a handful of standout scenes and even has short sequence involving noisy food that is actually quite funny, and although shot and released in the wake of the success of , the film rights to Maas’s book were purchased by De Laurentiis before Coppola’s film went into production, so accusations of a cash-in are misplaced here (having said that, its release was bought forward to ride the wave). It’s an easy recommendation for fans of Bronson and true-life mafia movies, while its old-school rise and fall of a gangster structure would be lifted to even greater heights in the years that followed in films like , and . Watch it once for its fluidly efficient episodic storytelling and its entertainment value, then check out the excellent special features on this disc and give it a second look, and you’ll likely get even more out of it. I certainly did.
sound and vision
A clean and stable 1.85:1 1080p transfer with a warm colour palette, well-balanced contrast and solid but not over-aggressive black levels. Detail is good and sometimes really good, though there is a very slight softness to many shots that I’m guessing was part of the film’s period aesthetic and is certainly not an issue. There is one shot of Valachi driving that is almost soft enough to classify as out-of-focus – the slightly uncomfortable framing suggests a partial frame enlargement that I’m assuming was made at the editing stage. On the whole, though, a very sound transfer.
The Linear PCM 1.0 mono English language soundtrack has some noticeable restrictions in the dynamic range, but the dialogue is clear and the music and effects are cleanly reproduced with no trace of damage or wear.
Also included is an Italian dub, and while much of the English soundtrack was also post-dubbed – mostly (though not exclusively) by the actors themselves – the dubbing is far more obvious here, in the mismatch of mouth movements to the words being spoken and the fluffier quality of dialogue recording. It’s fun to watch Bronson dubbed into Italian, though.
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired are available, and optional English subtitles kick in by default on the Italian dub.
extra features
Audio Commentary with Paul Talbot My usual process when covering discs is to complete my review of the film itself before watching the special features in order to better avoid being influenced by the views of others. However, a quick dip into this lively commentary by writer Paul Talbot – a Mafia historian and author of the books Bronson’s Loose! – The Making of the Death Wish Films and Bronson’s Loose Again! – On the Set With Charles Bronson – and I knew I’d need to pause my scribblings and give this a listen first. It turned out to be a shrewd move, as rather than offering his opinion of the film, Talbot focusses almost exclusively on providing detailed background information on everything from the actors and filmmakers to the guns and cars used, and most usefully the film’s treatment of the real-life case on which it was based. He highlights aspects that are accurately recreated and others that are the product of invention or interpretation, identifies actual Mafia figures who are absent or have had their names changed because they were still alive at the time of filming, and clarifies the reason for actions that you might not otherwise realise had meaning. Talbot talks at speed and with genuine enthusiasm for his subject, and there is a ton of information on the film, its makers, Valachi’s career and the key New York Mafia figures of the day. A superb companion to the film and an essential listen.
Giannetto De Rossi: In the Make-up Room (16:45) The film’s Italian make-up artist, Giannetto De Rossi, recalls being hired to work on the film in part because producer Dino De Laurentiis needed someone who had experience working with Charles Bronson (De Rosssi had previously worked with Bronson on Once Upon a Time in the West ) because “he knew how Bronson was,” then gives us an idea how difficult the actor could be before conversely describing him as “fantastic.” He briefly comments on some of the other performers in the film, tells a short but intriguing story of how spaghetti-loving cinematographer Aldo Tonti was once fired for using a piece of wood to judge light levels instead of a light meter, and recalls a conversation he had with a multiple-murderer when they were shooting on location in Sing Sing prison. When asked for his opinion on the film he intriguingly responds that it could have been better and that in his view director Terence Young wasn’t committed to the project.
Stephen Geller: Reviewing the Evidence (34:25) Although 80 years of age, screenwriter Stephen Geller here has the energy and enthusiasm of a twenty-something enthusiast for his craft and proves to be a most engaging and animated storyteller. He’s also clearly someone who is used to saying what he thinks, which first becomes evident when he talks about a pivotal scene in the script that was missing from the movie and later when he passes negative comment on Terence Young’s direction, despite admitting that he really liked Young as a person. He tells entertaining stories about meeting mafioso Frank Costello and working with Bronson, and suggests at one point that he was the only person on the film who was ever straight with him. He clearly had a lot of time for the actor, but he remains unimpressed with the casting of the very English Jill Ireland as Valachi’s Italian-American wife Maria. He also confirms that Joseph Wiseman’s Italian accent was a spot-on recreation of Maranzano’s recorded voice.
Valachi: The Violent Era (6:32) A featurette made during the film’s production that includes some behind-the-scenes footage that’s not in the following special feature, plus brief interviews in which Terence Young and Charles Bronson talk about Valachi and his criminal career.
On-set Footage (2:01) Just two minutes long and with washed-out colour, this brief peek behind the scenes during the filming of the banquet scene is still a valuable grab. We get to briefly glimpse Terence Young directing and witness Joseph Wiseman do a a bit of a Christian Bale and lose his cool mid-shot when his performance is disrupted by people talking off-set.
US Theatrical Trailer (3:22) An unsurprisingly workmanlike and soberly narrated trailer that plays on the film’s based-on-fact credentials and includes plenty of violent action.
German Theatrical Trailer (3:34) Essentially the same trailer but with German text, narration and dubbing of the actors and even of the real Valachi in footage from the Senate Hearing.
TV Spots (1:32) Two cut-down and less violent edits of the theatrical trailer aimed at TV audiences.
Radio Spot (1:01) A shorter, audio-only version of the theatrical trailer.
Image Gallery 85 screens of American and German promotional photos, scans of pages from the Japanese press book, record sleeves and international posters.
The Valachi Hearings (1963) (15:56) Extracts from the real Valachi’s testimony before Arkansas Senator John L McClellan’s congressional committee on organised crime and the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the US Subcommittee on Government Operations, which were broadcast in nightly news bulletins around America, which are subdivided into chaptered sections but can also be played as a single extra. Joseph Valachi Arrives at Capitol Hill (0:50) is what it says on the tin, being news footage of Valachi arriving at the hearing. In The Initiation Ceremony (4:16), Valachi describes the ceremony used to initiate him into the Cosa Nostra, a scene that is faithfully reproduced in the film. Frankly, it’s a miracle Valachi was able to finish a single sentence here, so often does the senator interrupt him and repeat what he just said. In The Banquet (5:51), Valachi recounts the speech delivered by Maranzano at the large meeting of families recreated in the film and discusses its purpose, with clarifying comments midway made by an unnamed presenter. In Narcotics and Killing (2:29), Valachi reveals how Chicago mobsters were paid a weekly bonus to shun the drug trade and talks about the killing of a mobster named Willie Morelli. Finally, in The Kiss of Death (2:37), he discusses the implications of being given the kiss of death by Don Vito Genovese. In all, a really welcome extra that allows us to see and hear the real Valachi confirm the accuracy of some aspects of the film’s portrayal of events.
Also included is a 36-page Booklet with a new essay by Pasquale Iannone, newspaper reports on Joseph Valachi’s criminal career, excerpts from the source book by Peter Maas, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits. If I was sent a PDF of this, as I usually am, I must have somehow mislaid it, but I have no doubt it is up to Indicator’s usual high standard.
summary
No classic, for sure, but a solid and entertaining crime biopic with an engaging cast and a surprising level of violence for a film of its day. It’s also closer to the known facts than I would have believed before watching and listening to the first-rate extras on this typically fine disc from Indicator. For genre fans and Bronson devotees especially, this has to come recommended.
The Valachi Papers
Italy | France 1972
110 mins
directed by
Terence Young
produced by
Dino De Laurentiis
Roger Duchet
written by
Stephen Geller
from the novel by
Peter Maas
cinematography
Aldo Tonti
editing
Johnny Dwyre
Monica Finzi
music
Riz Ortolani
Armando Trovajoli (uncredited)
production design
Mario Garbuglia
starring
Charles Bronson
Lino Ventura
Jill Ireland
Walter Chiari
Joseph Wiseman
Gerald O'Loughlin
Amedeo Nazzari
Fausto Tozzi
Pupella Maggio
disc details
region B
video
1.85:1
sound
LPCM 1.0 mono
languages
English
Italian
subtitles
English SDH
English (on Italian dub)
extras
Audio Commentary with Paul Talbot
Interview with make-up artist Giannetto De Rossi
Interview with screenwriter Stephen Geller
archive featurette
On-set footage
Trailers
TV spots
Radio spot
archive recordings
Booklet
distributor
Indicator [Powerhouse Films]
release date
25 January 2021
review posted
21 January 2021
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ISBN: B0000DOSF8
The Valachi Papers
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New York Times Bestseller"As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." --New York Times Book ReviewThe First Inside Account of the MafiaIn the 1960s a... This description may be from another edition of this product.
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A must for all organized crime readers, first inside look at the mafia, opening up the mafia to regular people, excellent book on the old mafia, it is great, popular categories.
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2 hr 5 mins
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A violent look at organized crime in America, from 1929 to the 1960s, through the eyes of mobster Jon Valachi. After a near-successful attempt on his life in prison, Valachi is convinced by a federal agent to become a mob informant. Based on the novel by Peter Maas.
An episodic quasi-documentary covering 32 years--mainly through flashback--unfolding that ever-fascinating subculture, the Outfit. Real names are used in a part-factual, part-fictional recounting of the development and growth of the organized Italian-American crime syndicate known as the Cosa Nostra, seen from the perspective of a minor "soldier" in the ranks, played by Bronson. Serving a 15-year sentence at the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary on a narcotics charge, Bronson learns that his ex-boss Ventura--a powerful capo in the hierarchy--has put out a "contract" on his life, believing Bronson to be responsible for his own incarceration. Frightened for his safety, Bronson alerts prison authorities that he is willing to talk about his past activities in return for extra security in a different prison. FBI agent O'Loughlin responds to Bronson's request. Bronson begins his long monolog, recounting details of his past as the visuals flash back to the year 1929, when he began his criminal career. The 30-year-old Bronson gets a job as driver for Mafia chieftain Nazzari, who in a dispute over territory, is killed by Ventura and Infanti. Bronson--seen by the killers to be ruthless, ambitious, and efficient, and thus grist for their own gangland mill-goes to work for them, along with his good friend and compatriot Chiari. Boss of bosses Wiseman, to avoid further internecine disputes, organizes the Outfit into "families," each with its own turf, and the rising young mafioso marries Ireland, the daughter of his murdered ex-employer, in a massive marriage ceremony, his peers bringing costly gifts to the grandiose hotel ballroom setting. Later, in 1963, Infanti is convicted of a felony and Ventura flees temporarily to Italy for sanctuary, appointing Chiari as bodyguard for his mistress, Baxa, during his absence. Upon his return Ventura discovers that Chiari and Baxa have formed a romantic attachment, and orders that Chiari be castrated in as graphic a demonstration of punishment-fitting-crime as ever rendered on screen. Finding his friend so mutilated, Bronson puts the man out of his misery. The panoply of crime continues to unroll as the stolid monster brings his avid FBI listener up through the year 1957, when a secretly bugged meeting of major mobsters is convened in Appalachia in a country estate. Federal agents raid the conference and place both Ventura and Bronson under arrest. The string of flashbcks ends back in Bronson's cell. O'Loughlin persuades Bronson to testify before a US Senate subcommittee on crime in 1963, whereupon Ventura increases the reward for his head to $100,000. Remorseful at having broken omerta--the Mafia code of silence--Bronson tries unsuccessfully to hang himself in his cell, using as a noose the cord of the TV set on which he viewed himself testifying before the subcommittee. Ultimately Bronson dies of a heart attack--ironically six months after the death of his incarcerated enemy, Ventura. Author Maas's book--enormously popular with a reading public fascinated by details of the inner workings of a much-feared secret society of hoodlums and killers--was based partly on minor mobster Valachi's Senate subcommittee testimony and partly on follow-up interviews with the imprisoned hoodlum, whose revelations broke the chain of secrecy surrounding the highly structured Cosa Nostra ("Our Thing," literally). Director Francis Ford Coppola's enormously successful movie version of Mario Puzo's The Godfather had preceded THE VALACHI PAPERS to the marketplace, and audiences thought this film-which seems somewhat hastily constructed--had been quickly put together to exploit the earlier blockbuster's popularity. In reality, Maas's book had been published before Puzo's, and film rights had been sold before the release of THE GODFATHER. Production difficulties slowed the shooting in the US when New York-based Mafia mobsters arranged a series of "accidents" hoping to prevent the picture from being made. (Even after the film's completion, the producers were plagued with such events; a bomb threat emptied a preview screening room of critics in Manhattan.) Ultimately producer De Laurentiis had to do most of the filming at his own studios in Rome. The book was bowdlerized somewhat in the movie; Chiari's castration appears to have been invented for visual effect--in fact, Chiari himself plays an amalgam of two different characters in the book. The critics pilloried the picture on its initial release; many of them--despite its litany of gore--though it was boring. Despite its negative reviews, it did well at the box office, bringing in $9.4 million in the first eight months of release. Much of this take may have resulted from the popularity of superstar Bronson, then thought to be the world's biggest movie draw. Initially loath to play his part in the picture, Bronson was finally persuaded by a lucrative three-film contract that gave him a million dollars for each picture, as well as a percentage of the gross profits, making him one of the highest-paid actors in history. Bronson's wife, Ireland, plays his screen wife here--an additional inducement to the actor, who wanted to keep his family together during his filmic excursions abroad. Paramount had planned to release the film, but the studio planners quarreled with De Laurentiis over the details of distribution, so the company lost the lucrative rights. Director Young does well with many of the violent action scenes--his forte, since he directed three of the best such scenes of another type of crime caper in the "James Bond" series, including one with Wiseman in DR. NO (1963). He does less well with his international cast of players, whose comic-opera dialects are sometimes downright laughable. Young had directed Bronson before (COLD SWEAT, 1971, and RED SUN, 1972), and he got an appropriately wooden response from the actor.
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The Valachi Papers
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Genre
Mystery & Thrillers
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Color, Subtitled, Full Screen, DVD
Contributor
Mar�a Baxa, Terence Young, Gerald S. O'Loughlin, Lino Ventura, Joseph Wiseman, Stephen Geller, Charles Bronson, Walter Chiari, Angelo Infanti, Fausto Tozzi, Pupella Maggio, Amedeo Nazzari, Guido Leontini, Peter Maas, Massimo De Rita, Jill Ireland, Arduino Maiuri
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2 hours and 5 minutes
Product Description
Sentenced to 15 years in prison, former mob "button man" Joe Valachi (Charles Bronson) turns informant when he learns top Mafia capo Vito Genovese (Lino Ventura) has put a $100,000 contract out on his life. From thievery and extortion to vengeance and murder, Valachi spills the innermost workings of the Cosa Nostra, culminating in his riveting testimony before a Senate subcommittee on organized crime. Based on Peter Maa's best-selling book, THE VALACHI PAPERS is gripping, shocking and absolutely true, "a hard-hitting, violence-ridden documented melodrama of the underworld" (Variety).
Product Dimensions : 7.5 x 5.5 x 0.75 inches; 2.88 ounces
Director : Terence Young
Media Format : Color, Subtitled, Full Screen, DVD
Run time : 2 hours and 5 minutes
Actors : Charles Bronson, Lino Ventura, Jill Ireland, Walter Chiari, Joseph Wiseman
Subtitles: : English, French
Studio : Sony Pictures
ASIN : B000BX0VTG
Writers : Arduino Maiuri, Massimo De Rita, Peter Maas, Stephen Geller
Number of discs : 1
#5,606 in Mystery & Thrillers (Movies & TV)
#17,133 in Drama DVDs
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The Valachi Papers 1972 DVD Charles Bronson Jill Ireland Widescreen
The Valachi Papers by Peter Maas
The Valachi Papers (1972)
The Valachi Papers by Peter Maas 1968 Mafia Syndicate Book
The Valachi Papers (1972)
The Valachi Papers: Maas, Peter: 9780060507428: Amazon.com: Books
VIDEO
KCOP 13’s “The Valachi Papers” commercial (1988)
The Valachi Papers 1972
Joe Valachi's First Hit
Pulitzer Prize winner on the Mafia, Frank Sinatra, Joe Bonanno and Sonny Franzese. (PART TWO)
The Valachi Papers 1972 masseria kill
The Valachi Papers (1972)
COMMENTS
THE VALACHI PAPERS by Peter Maas
Valachi talked after receiving the ""Kiss of Death""; he was unfairly (he says) marked by Vito Genovese who is still serving time but keeps his position as current overlord of the underworld. Valachi had been a loyal ""Family"" man since the rise to power in the '30's. ... He may well become a legitimately rich man with the help of the Papers ...
The Valachi Papers (book)
The Valachi Papers is a 1968 biography written by Peter Maas, telling the story of former mafia member Joe Valachi, a low-ranking member of the New York-based Genovese crime family, who was the first ever government witness coming from the American Mafia itself. His account of his criminal past revealed many previously unknown details of the Mafia. The book was made into a film in 1972, also ...
The Valachi Papers: Maas, Peter: 9780060507428: Amazon.com: Books
The Valachi Papers. Paperback - March 18, 2003. New York Times Bestseller. "As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." —New York Times Book Review. The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts.
The Valachi Papers movie review (1972)
The difficulty of considering the syndicate from a worm's-eye view is one "The Valachi Papers" never quite comes to grips with. Since everything in the movie is supposedly true and told by Valachi in flashback, we have the spectacle of a minor hood constantly rubbing elbows with the big boys. At the celebrated Appalachian convention of the top ...
The Valachi Papers (film)
The Valachi Papers is a 1972 neo noir crime film directed by Terence Young.It is an adaptation of the 1968 non-fiction book of the same name by Peter Maas, with a screenplay by Stephen Geller.It tells the story of Joseph Valachi, a Mafia informant in the early 1960s who was the first ever mafioso to acknowledge the organization's existence. The film stars Charles Bronson as Valachi and Lino ...
The Valachi Papers Summary
Summary. In 1964 Joseph Valachi (1904-1971), a Mafia informant, was urged by the U.S. Department of Justice to write a personal history of his underworld career with the so-called Cosa Nostra ...
The Valachi Papers
The Valachi Papers. The First Inside Account of the Mafia In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi. Daring to break the Mob's code of silence for the first time, Valachi detailed the organization of organized crimefrom the capos, or bosses, of every Family, to ...
The Valachi Papers: Maas, Peter: 9780060507428: Books
The Valachi Papers. Paperback - March 18 2003. New York Times Bestseller. "As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." —New York Times Book Review. The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts.
The Valachi Papers
The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi. Daring to break the Mob's code of silence for the first time, Valachi detailed the organization of organized crime from the capos, or bosses, of every Family, to the hit men who ...
The Valachi Papers: Maas, Peter: Amazon.com: Books
The Valachi Papers. Mass Market Paperback - January 1, 1972. by Peter Maas (Author) 326. See all formats and editions. The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi. Daring to break the Mob's code of silence for the first ...
The Valachi Papers by Peter Maas, Paperback
"As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." —New York Times Book Review. The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi.
The Valachi Papers (Paperback)
"As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." —New York Times Book Review. The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi.
The Valachi Papers (1972)
The Valachi Papers: Directed by Terence Young. With Charles Bronson, Lino Ventura, Jill Ireland, Walter Chiari. Gangster Joe Valachi is a marked man in the same joint where mob boss Don Vito Genovese is imprisoned and he's forced to co-operate with the DA in exchange for protection.
Review: The Valachi Papers
Review: The Valachi Papers. Starring Charles Bronson (as Valachi) and directed by Terence Young, The Valachi Papers tells the true story of Joseph Valachi; a bag man for the New York Mob who first made the term "Cosa Nostra" known. In the early 1960s he testified to court that there was such a thing as a mafia in America after being given ...
The Valachi Papers
With enough gunfire to make even Sam Peckinpah jealous, "The Valachi Papers" makes for one enjoyable but gory ride. Rated 3/5 Stars • Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Amazon.com: Customer reviews: The Valachi Papers
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for The Valachi Papers at Amazon.com. Read honest and unbiased product reviews from our users.
The Valachi Papers Blu-ray review
A biography of Valachi written by journalist Peter Maas that was drawn in part from Valachi's own memoirs was published in 1968 under the title The Valachi Papers. The rights to the book were purchased by famed Italian producer Dino De Laurentiis, and in 1972 the film adaptation landed in cinemas.
The Valachi Papers book by Peter Maas
Buy a cheap copy of The Valachi Papers book by Peter Maas. New York Times BestsellerAs fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members. ... See Customer Reviews. Select Format. Hardcover. $10.89 - $11.49. Hardcover $10.89 - $11.49. Paperback. $8.29 - $15.19. Paperback $8.29 - $15.19. Mass Market Paperback ...
The Valachi Papers
The Valachi Papers Reviews. 1972. 2 hr 5 mins. Drama. PG. Watchlist. Where to Watch. A violent look at organized crime in America, from 1929 to the 1960s, through the eyes of mobster Jon Valachi ...
The Valachi Papers (1968)
The Buster in Valachi's story is the same Buster Bonanno refers to. David Critchley identified him as Sebastiano Domingo, killed in 1933. Good writeup btw, makes me want to revisit the book.
The Valachi Papers
Based on Peter Maa's best-selling book, THE VALACHI PAPERS is gripping, shocking and absolutely true, "a hard-hitting, violence-ridden documented melodrama of the underworld" (Variety). ... There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later. toddowen. 5.0 out of 5 stars First time seeing this movie unedited. Reviewed in the ...
Nancy Pelosi's New Book Climbs The Amazon and Barnes & Noble Charts
The Art of Power is rapidly climbing up the book charts, including landing in the top 10 on Amazon's bestseller list and the top 10 on Barnes & Noble's bestseller list.
IMAGES
VIDEO
COMMENTS
Valachi talked after receiving the ""Kiss of Death""; he was unfairly (he says) marked by Vito Genovese who is still serving time but keeps his position as current overlord of the underworld. Valachi had been a loyal ""Family"" man since the rise to power in the '30's. ... He may well become a legitimately rich man with the help of the Papers ...
The Valachi Papers is a 1968 biography written by Peter Maas, telling the story of former mafia member Joe Valachi, a low-ranking member of the New York-based Genovese crime family, who was the first ever government witness coming from the American Mafia itself. His account of his criminal past revealed many previously unknown details of the Mafia. The book was made into a film in 1972, also ...
The Valachi Papers. Paperback - March 18, 2003. New York Times Bestseller. "As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." —New York Times Book Review. The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts.
The difficulty of considering the syndicate from a worm's-eye view is one "The Valachi Papers" never quite comes to grips with. Since everything in the movie is supposedly true and told by Valachi in flashback, we have the spectacle of a minor hood constantly rubbing elbows with the big boys. At the celebrated Appalachian convention of the top ...
The Valachi Papers is a 1972 neo noir crime film directed by Terence Young.It is an adaptation of the 1968 non-fiction book of the same name by Peter Maas, with a screenplay by Stephen Geller.It tells the story of Joseph Valachi, a Mafia informant in the early 1960s who was the first ever mafioso to acknowledge the organization's existence. The film stars Charles Bronson as Valachi and Lino ...
Summary. In 1964 Joseph Valachi (1904-1971), a Mafia informant, was urged by the U.S. Department of Justice to write a personal history of his underworld career with the so-called Cosa Nostra ...
The Valachi Papers. The First Inside Account of the Mafia In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi. Daring to break the Mob's code of silence for the first time, Valachi detailed the organization of organized crimefrom the capos, or bosses, of every Family, to ...
The Valachi Papers. Paperback - March 18 2003. New York Times Bestseller. "As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." —New York Times Book Review. The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts.
The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi. Daring to break the Mob's code of silence for the first time, Valachi detailed the organization of organized crime from the capos, or bosses, of every Family, to the hit men who ...
The Valachi Papers. Mass Market Paperback - January 1, 1972. by Peter Maas (Author) 326. See all formats and editions. The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi. Daring to break the Mob's code of silence for the first ...
"As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." —New York Times Book Review. The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi.
"As fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members." —New York Times Book Review. The First Inside Account of the Mafia. In the 1960s a disgruntled soldier in New York's Genovese Crime Family decided to spill his guts. His name was Joseph Valachi.
The Valachi Papers: Directed by Terence Young. With Charles Bronson, Lino Ventura, Jill Ireland, Walter Chiari. Gangster Joe Valachi is a marked man in the same joint where mob boss Don Vito Genovese is imprisoned and he's forced to co-operate with the DA in exchange for protection.
Review: The Valachi Papers. Starring Charles Bronson (as Valachi) and directed by Terence Young, The Valachi Papers tells the true story of Joseph Valachi; a bag man for the New York Mob who first made the term "Cosa Nostra" known. In the early 1960s he testified to court that there was such a thing as a mafia in America after being given ...
With enough gunfire to make even Sam Peckinpah jealous, "The Valachi Papers" makes for one enjoyable but gory ride. Rated 3/5 Stars • Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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A biography of Valachi written by journalist Peter Maas that was drawn in part from Valachi's own memoirs was published in 1968 under the title The Valachi Papers. The rights to the book were purchased by famed Italian producer Dino De Laurentiis, and in 1972 the film adaptation landed in cinemas.
Buy a cheap copy of The Valachi Papers book by Peter Maas. New York Times BestsellerAs fascinating as fiction, a bloody history of the Mafia as lived by one of its members. ... See Customer Reviews. Select Format. Hardcover. $10.89 - $11.49. Hardcover $10.89 - $11.49. Paperback. $8.29 - $15.19. Paperback $8.29 - $15.19. Mass Market Paperback ...
The Valachi Papers Reviews. 1972. 2 hr 5 mins. Drama. PG. Watchlist. Where to Watch. A violent look at organized crime in America, from 1929 to the 1960s, through the eyes of mobster Jon Valachi ...
The Buster in Valachi's story is the same Buster Bonanno refers to. David Critchley identified him as Sebastiano Domingo, killed in 1933. Good writeup btw, makes me want to revisit the book.
Based on Peter Maa's best-selling book, THE VALACHI PAPERS is gripping, shocking and absolutely true, "a hard-hitting, violence-ridden documented melodrama of the underworld" (Variety). ... There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later. toddowen. 5.0 out of 5 stars First time seeing this movie unedited. Reviewed in the ...
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