在遥远的天界,有一群剧作家终日笔耕不辍,撰写着每一位人类的人生。负责为他们端茶倒水的茶助(松山研一 饰)熟悉作家笔下的每一个人物,内心不时点评臧否着他们的创作手法以及人类的百样命运。因为无心向其中一位作家提了建议,导致茶助长久以来所喜欢的人类女孩新城百合(大野丝 饰)死于车祸。对此颇感自责的茶助跳下天界,决心在最后关头拯救女孩。其他作家暗暗帮助,派来笔下的古董商店老板种田润一(大杉涟 饰)和拉面小哥彦村(伊势谷友介 饰)帮助他完成使命。与此同时,另一股力量则千方百计要杀掉百合。
茶助一会儿变成天使,一会儿变成黑社会,而拯救百合的那份决心从来没有改变……。Umberto Lenzi is undoubtedly the king of Italian crime movies, but unfortunately| Syndicate Sadists is not the best examples of his work in this genre. Lenzi's crime flicks tend to be a cut above the rest because he makes films based on stories with a point, and they don't lack direction| but this film feels a bit too wayward to fully fit with the rest of his stuff. The film takes obvious influence from Sergio Leone's landmark western 'A Fistful of Dollars' (which in turn, took influence from Akira Kurosawa's landmark samurai flick Yojimbo), in that it features two warring families and a strong character at the centre. The crime that Lenzi focuses on is kidnapping, and we centre on a character called 'Rambo'. Rambo is dragged into the war between the two families after his brother is killed because of it. Rambo uses his brains and brawn to pit the two families against one another, in the hope of gaining revenge for his brother's death, rescuing a young boy that they've kidnapped, and ultimately letting the two sides destroy one another.
The film's biggest asset is undoubtedly Tomas Milian. Milian was put to great use by Lenzi in almost all of his crime thrillers. The range of characters he has played for Lenzi is immense, and this one is easily one of the coolest. The character is called Rambo, which immediately sprang to mind the popular Sylvester Stallone character - but for once, the Italians actually haven't stolen this name as Syndicate Sadists was released first! As usual, the film is wickedly entertaining, as we get to watch Milian get himself involved in the usual array of car chases, shootouts and brawls. Lenzi has got him riding a motorbike this time round, and every scene featuring it and Milian is a real standout! However, the film often feels like it doesn't really have anywhere to go, and this means that the running time is stretched out more than it should be. Compared to the crime films of other Italian directors, Syndicate Sadists is more than above average| but in relation to Lenzi crime flicks such as Almost Human and The Cynic, The Rat and The Fist - it doesn't stand tall as one of Lenzi's best. Still, if you're looking for ninety minutes of testosterone fuelled mayhem - Syndicate Sadists will suffice!。