TOUGH TO KILL is a nihilistic Italian war film, following a bunch of soldiers as they trek through the South American wilderness in a hunt for bounty money. It's one of those films with a small cast and plenty of action, featuring characters double-crossing each other throughout. The whole thing has a gritty and downbeat atmosphere that somehow combines with the visuals to offer better than usual entertainment.The film feels a little bit like the Italian WW2 movies of the late 1960s, updated with a downbeat '70s vibe. There are some touches of the Italian cannibal genre, such as the character with a wounded leg, which is no surprise given that the director is none other than Joe D'Amato, the notorious exploitation stalwart. The action is low rent but effective, and the fast pacing means at least that it's never boring. The movie was shot in the Dominican Republic and features Luc Merenda as the amoral hero and Donald O'Brien as the tough major. It reminded me of THE DIRTY SEVEN, a later D'Amato movie with Laura Gemser, which is even better.

Luc Merenda joins up with a group of mercenaries in some undisclosed African country. He decides to go on a mission with them, but secretly does so hoping to snag a guy with a million dollar bounty on his head. Some of the other mercenaries find out and want in on the deal, needless to say it's not long before greed gets the better of them. Directed and co-written by prolific, infamous, misunderstood Joe D'Amato, this macho action film is one of his less sleazy (not UNsleazy, just less so), more comprehensible films. It's also one of the director's best films and any fan of Italian B-movie cinema will probably like it. It's a travesty that the DVD of the movie is so horrid.My Grade: B DVD Extras: Hmmmm.. we get..nope, nothing (worse than that, the video on the DVD looks to be VHS quality, and the sound is VERY sub-par)

What can I say about this film which hasnt already been said. Its a gritty, sleazy, cheap, but completely gripping action action thriller. You will be on the edge of your seat as the cast of completely unlikeable characters tear eachother to peices over a million dollar bounty. The pounding score and grimy setting really add to this nihilistic little nugget. This film proves that given a decent script and cast Joe D'Amato can really deliver the goods. A must see for fans of grimy jungle action thrillers and/or italian cinema.

I saw this pretty much back to back with Fabrizio De Angelis's THE LAST MATCH (a film made 12 years later but with much of the same crew), and while they're both "bad" action movies which I happen to absolutely love, I have to admit I enjoyed them for very different reasons. While LAST MATCH was fun because of the ludicrous heights of its bad-ness, TOUGH TO KILL is a great movie because it uses its badness to dig a filthy hole in the ground and wallow in it.I love absolutely gritty, dirty, low budget movies like this (or any of the many Italian Women-In-Prison or Nazi Exploitation films made around the same time) because it's all completely fantasic. It's like being transported to a completely different world with its own sense of reality. In TOUGH TO KILL, human life isn't so important as getting rich, and the lure of 1 million dollars causes the 4 main characters to rip each other to pieces even though they need to depend on each other to survive in the harsh African wilderness. Like the other reviewer said, you can't get much more macho with lots of guys running around without shirts (even Donald O'Brien, who I'd always assumed was wimp before this movie) and scarcely one woman in the entire movie. There's explosions, killing, maiming, etc. but none too graphic and the action scenes are also pretty scarce. What this film has though are some great African locations and a tightly-constructed plot that will draw you in if you get past the initial trashiness of the production. By the end of the movie I was actually rooting out loud for the hero to get the money, and I'm not sure if the surprise ending was exactly what I wanted, but it was pretty damn close. Have fun seeking out this gem and enjoy! This film is VASTLY superior to many of D'amato's other films of the time and featuring a very similar Stelvio Cipriani score to the one used in THE GREAT ALLIGATOR a year later.