Johnny Cool (1963)

Thanks for the memories!

Simply A Masterpiece

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

I finally got to watch Johnny Cool for the first time today and i was so surprised how great this movie is, i can honestly say its way way ahead of its time and had me glued for the entire 101 minutes. Im a huge fan of Elizabeth Montgomery and watched a few of her performances outside Bewitched (which i love) hadn't been able to find a copy until recently. Its a top casted movie and many of the past greats are found here in this classic gangster style movie which all played a great part and don't think Elizabeth Montgomery ever looked more beautiful. Its starts with a great building foundation from the old country and then gets right into the gangster style it very well succeeds at. I strongly suggest everyone who is a fan of the beautifully talented Elizabeth Montgomery or simply anyone who enjoys a great classic 10/10..i hope this movie and all that had Elizabeth Montgomery star in become available for us to buy on DVD or even better blu-ray. Johnny Cool is up there with the BEST of the classics and it deserves to be presented to us completely restored to be enjoyed forever. Once again i have no problem in giving this a 10/10 for enjoyment and pure talent.. If anyone has a good copy can you please let me know..Thanks

Henry Silva is Johnny Collini, aka Johnny Cool. Adopted by the deported gangster Marc Lawrence in Sicili, he's sent to America to take over all of his former businesses, wiping out the current managers if necessary. It becomes necessary.Swept up in Johnny Cool's serial assassinations is Elizabeth Montgomery as Darien Guiness from Scarsdale -- great WASP name. She becomes Silva's love slave. We all know what great lovers Italian men are, even if they're not necessarily great actors. She aids and abets his crimes, up to and including murder by dynamite. Finally, as the agents of social control are closing in on her, she gets drunk and the next day decides to drop the dime on her boyfriend.First of all, what a cast! Movie historians will be impressed -- John Dierkes, Elisha Cook Jr., John McGiver, Robert Armstrong ("King Kong") inter alia. One of the executive producers was Peter Lawford, which may account for the Rat Pack character of some of the cast -- Joey Bishop, Sammy Davis Jr., and a reference to Jilly's, one of Sinatra's favorite bars in New York.Most of these celebrity appearances are in bit parts. The story depends on the leads, Henry Silva and Elizabeth Montgomery. Silva isn't a bravura actor nor a particularly interesting one. He's much better as part of an ensemble, in smaller roles, especially villainous ones. He was great as "Mother" in "A Hatful of Rain" but those glistening, quartzite irises can't carry a film on their own. He's given no help by the script. Not a tag line in a cartload.Elizabeth Montgomery overacts volcanically when she's not chirping away in her "Bewitched" persona. This may not be her fault. The director ought to shape the performance of a newcomer, and Montgomery was quite good in a later made-for-TV movie, "The Legend of Lizzie Borden." Besides, she's so damnably cute and sexy, in the way that Jane Fonda was at the time, that she gets a pass.The film strives for the essence of "cool" as the word was understood in the late 1950s.The score by Billy May is a good example of what I mean. It's jazz oriented but not challenging. More like big band swing, the kind of backing that Sinatra had from Nelson Riddle. I swear that the climactic phrases in the score feature Maynard Ferguson's trumpet. He's the only guy I've ever heard who can run a trumpet up into the stratosphere, like a dog whistle.But, as I say, the cool we see here is 1950s cool. It now seems a little dated. The general concept involves expensive suits, styled hair, smoking, big tips, American cars that are forty feet long, stylish mannerisms and digs, an excess of self confidence, dames (or, more commonly, "broads" or "mouses"), shades, a stride that has a bounce in it, and an air of unflappability. Think Las Vegas. Sinatra embodied it. You didn't have to be rich, though. Marlon Brando was cool in "The Wild One." Steve McQueen in "Bullet" was neo-cool.

Greatly enjoyed this fantastic film from 1963 with plenty of cameos of Marc Lawrence, Elisha Cook Jr.,("I Wake Up Screaming"), Telly Savalas,"Kojak", Joey Bishop (Comedian) and Jim Backus, (Mr. Magoo)Henry Silva, (Johnny Cool) was given a job from a retired Mob gangster hiding out in Rome,(Marc Lawrence) who wanted him to repay some guys with a nice Mob Hit. Elizabeth Montgomery, gets involved with Johnny Cool and starts going on a killing spree with him doing all sorts of wild things and at the same time falling in love with this guy. There are plenty of great musical sounds in this picture by Billy May which adds a great deal to the entire picture. This is the type of film that will never grow old and will keep you interested right to the very end. Enjoy.

I saw this movie accidentally a number of years ago channel surfing. I missed the first 5 minutes of it. It caught my eye because of Elizabeth Montgomery. It was a very dark movie considering what I knew Elizabeth for (Bewitched!). It was one of the more gripping movies I have ever seen. Henry Silva is one of the best "bad guy" actors I know. In this movie, he outdoes himself - causing the viewer to both loathe him and feel sorry for him in much the same way Elizabeth's character does. I highly recommend this movie.I was very surprised I had not seen it before, what with all the cameo appearances by rather big name actors and entertainers. If any of you find this on DVD, PLEASE let me know! I would really like a copy for myself.Regards to all, gadgetcoder