Violent Naples
Violent Naples is a 1976 film from Italy and France, directed by Umberto Lenzi, running 95 minutes. reelscum files it under poliziotteschi.
- Year
- 1976 · 1970s films
- Runtime
- 95 min
- Director
- Umberto Lenzi
- Updated
- 10 Aug 2026
- Obscurity
- cult (54/100)
- Also known as
- Death Dealers · Sudden Justice · Violent Protection
Defined in the glossary: Poliziotteschi
Merli takes his no-mercy cop routine to Naples. Fast, brutal, and politically incoherent as ever.
Umberto Lenzi transplants the tough-cop formula to Naples, with Maurizio Merli as a hard-line detective waging war on the city's protection rackets and street crime with little regard for procedure. It delivers exactly what the cycle promised: chases, beatings and a hero whose methods the film both condemns and clearly relishes.
Merli is the definitive poliziottesco enforcer, moustache and all, and the Naples locations give it real texture. The politics are as muddled as ever. A representative, energetic entry from one of the cycle's most reliable directors.
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Where to watch
Legal options in France (nearest we have)
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Written about
- Poliziotteschi: the Italian cop film, 1973 to 1980
A moustache, a Magnum, and total contempt for the courts.
On these lists
- Poliziotteschi starter pack
Italian cops who close cases by ignoring the courts and the paperwork. Start at the top, before the moustaches blur together.
Filed alongside
The Violent Professionals
Martino sends Luc Merenda undercover and off the leash. Prime cop-on-a-rampage stuff.
The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist
Late-cycle Castellari. Everyone is exhausted and it shows productively.
Cops vs. Thugs
Fukasaku again, arguing the two categories in the title are the same.
Free Hand for a Tough Cop
Tomas Milian debuts Er Monnezza, the filthiest man in Italian crime cinema, and steals his own movie.
Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man
Two cops who are clearly the villains. Ruggero Deodato, before the jungle.
Shoot First, Die Later
Di Leo's dirty-cop picture, and the rot goes all the way home.
Rome Armed to the Teeth
Maurizio Merli punches Rome for 100 minutes. Politics: incoherent.
Street Law
Castellari's Death Wish. An ordinary engineer, brutalised and ignored, arms himself.
High Crime
Castellari's breakout in the genre, and Franco Nero furious for ninety minutes.
Almost Human
Tomas Milian as a repellent psychopath. Deeply unpleasant, very good.
The Big Racket
Castellari's best. The car-rolling-down-the-hill shot is famous for a reason.
The Italian Connection
Mario Adorf on foot versus a car. Best chase in Italian cinema.