Name: Il cacciatore di uomini
Genre: Action
Released: 2009-07-06
Duration: 1 h 34 min
Rating: 4.1
Cast: Luca Ward, Bryony Afferson, Rachel Grant

This TV movie's international pedigree intrigued me; it's an Italian television production, shot in English, and filmed briefly in London and mainly in Kenya. It's a rather cheap and cheerful production but it does tell a fairly interesting story about a hit-man going undercover in Africa to bring down a target and the British tour guide he hooks up with.

Surprisingly, for a TV movie, this is a rather gory affair with some bloody squib hits throughout and other adult situations. It's also rather goofy, with cheap and occasionally inept staging, but the authentic location photography helps to make up for this. I was particularly interested in watching because Michele Massimo Tarantini writes and directs, and he's been working since the 1970s with a career that includes WOMEN IN FURY and MASSACRE IN DINOSAUR VALLEY.

The protagonist is played by the lithe Luca Ward, who I found to be quite convincing as a grizzled hit-man. Bryony Afferson plays the tour guide and is less assured; it's quite obvious to anyone watching that she's not the most experienced of actresses, but I nonetheless found myself warming to her as the story progresses and she's certainly a rather striking redhead. Overall, though, THE African GAME is a rather cheesy and silly thriller, and it doesn't work all that well despite the potential of the premise.

Italian cinema has deeply influenced world cinema through its socially conscious realism and modernist experimentation, but it also flourished in popular genres like peplum (sword & sandal), giallo thrillers, and broad comedies. Its narratives often weave together politics, contemporary social change, class consciousness, and family dynamics, balancing artistic ambition with entertainment that resonated widely.

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The action genre features fast-paced, thrilling, and intense sequences of physical feats, combat, and excitement. The characters of these stories are involved in daring and often dangerous situations, requiring them to rely on their physical prowess, skills, and quick thinking to overcome challenges and adversaries.

A London-based Italian assassin is sent to Africa to complete a job, where he is driven by a beautiful young English tour guide. But are the people who hired him all that they seemed?

Luca Ward, Rachel Grant, and Bryony Afferson in Il cacciatore di uomini (2009)

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Il cacciatore di uomini

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