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Alternative Titel:
F.B.I. enquête à Los Angeles (France)
Agente 707: Intrigo a Los Angeles (Italy) (reissue title)
Tom Collins jagt die schwarze Natter (West Germany)
Intrigue in Los Angeles (World-wide) (English title)
Limited edition of 500 copies.
INTRIGO A LOS ANGELES (aka "Intrigue in Los Angeles," "F.B.I. enquête à Los Angeles" and "Tom Collins jagt die schwarze Natter") is a Giallo/Spy hybrid directed in 1964 by Romano Ferrara (under the pseudonym Roy Freemount), produced by Lucio Marcuzzo and Mario Perelli for Cinelions, Publitalia, and starring Mary Luger, Renato Terra Caizzi, Gaetano Quartararo, Stefano Pfau, Luciana Marina and Carol Walker.
F.B.I. agents David Blair and Thelma Avery are assigned to search for Professor Weiss, who had mysteriously disappeared after discovering an antidote for atomic radiation. Following a feeble lead offered by the mysterious death of two dancers, David and Thelma begin to investigate their supervisor, George. They discover that Professor Weiss is being held prisoner by George and his sister—the professor's former assistant—who want to sell the precious formula to a foreign country. Just when it looks like the two agents are done for, the timely intervention of the police saves both them and Professor Weiss.
Piero Umiliani created a marvelous jazz score for this film, availing himself of exceptional soloists including the great Chet Baker on trumpet and the maestro himself at the piano. In 1964, C.A.M. released an album (CMS. 30-104) with 15 mono cues (38:00 in length) that is now one of the rarest vinyls in their catalog, coveted by fans of the Firenze composer and jazz lovers alike. For this world premiere CD, we used the original mono master session tapes on which we discovered some unreleased material, bringing the total running time of our CD to 43:12—everything that was recorded for the movie. Audio restoration has improved the sound immensely, making for a great listening experience.
M° Umiliani composed some danceable bossa nova themes (the slow "Idillio giallorosa," the quicker "Minorenne cercasi"), night club atmospheres with guitars and vibraphone ("Motel"), piano, guitar and trumpet rhythms in a humorous context ("Spogliarello da circo"), small combo with trumpet ("Jazz Bar") alternating with classic jazz cues with noir flavor ("Movimento con swing," "Tipi sospetti," "Agguato"), dramatic woodwinds with tense strings ("Pedinamento," "Nel Labirinto") and jazz with experimental electronics in "Ritmo neutronico," "Contagio atomico," "Messaggio elettronico," "Fissione nucleare" and "Comunicazione Spaziale." The well-known and appreciated style of the unforgettable M° Piero Umiliani is on full display in this precious CD, which deserves to be preserved in your film music archives.
- Claudio Fuiano
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