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John Cassavetes engages with film noir in his own inimitable style with The Killing of a Chinese Bookie. Ben Gazzara brilliantly portrays a gentleman’s club owner, Cosmo Vitelli, desperately committed to maintaining a facade of suave gentility despite the seediness of his environment and his own unhealthy appetites. When he runs afoul of loan sharks, Cosmo must carry out a terrible crime or lose his way of life. Mesmerizing and idiosyncratic, the film is a provocative examination of masculine identity. It is presented here in two versions: Cassavetes’s original 1976 edit and his 1978 one, nearly thirty minutes shorter.
Original Release
02/15/1976
US Release
02/15/1976
Links
Cast
Name | Character |
---|
Ben Gazzara | Cosmo Vittelli |
Timothy Carey | Flo |
Seymour Cassel | Mort Weil |
Robert Phillips | Phil |
Morgan Woodward | The Boss |
John Kullers | The Accountant |
Al Ruban | Marty Reitz |
Azizi Johari | Rachel |
Virginia Carrington | Mama |
Meade Roberts | Mr. Sophistication |
Directors
Writers
Cast
Name | Character |
---|
Ben Gazzara | Cosmo Vittelli |
Timothy Carey | Flo |
Seymour Cassel | Mort Weil |
Robert Phillips | Phil |
Morgan Woodward | The Boss |
John Kullers | The Accountant |
Al Ruban | Marty Reitz |
Azizi Johari | Rachel |
Virginia Carrington | Mama |
Meade Roberts | Mr. Sophistication |
Alice Friedland | Sherry |
Donna Gordon | Margo Donnar |
Haji | Haji |
Carol Warren | Carol |
Kathalina Veniero | Annie |
Yvette Morris | Yvette |
Jack Ackerman | Musical Director |
David Rowlands | Lamarr |
Trisha Pelham | Waitress |
Eddie Shaw | Taxi Driver |
Producers
Name | Role |
---|
Al Ruban | Producer |
Phil Burton | Producer |