{{short description|Italian film director}} {{Use British English|date=September 2021}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2021}} {{Infobox person | name = | image = EnzoG.Castellari.jpg | caption = Castellari signing ''[[Inglourious Basterds]]'' posters at FFF (Lund International Fantastic Film Festival) in [[Lund]], Sweden, 2009 | image_size = 220 | birth_name = Enzo Girolami | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=y|1938|7|29}} | birth_place = [[Rome]], Italy | years_active = 1960–present | occupation = {{hlist|Film director|screenwriter}} }} '''Enzo G. Castellari''' ({{ne|'''Enzo Girolami'''}}; born 29 July 1938) is an Italian film director, screenwriter and actor.
==Early life== Castellari was born in Rome{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=289}} into a family of filmmakers. His father was a boxer turned film maker [[Marino Girolami]].{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}} His uncle is filmmaker [[Romolo Guerrieri]] and his brother was actor [[Ennio Girolami]]. He initially was a boxer like his father and went to school to get a degree in architecture.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}}
==Career== Castellari began work on film assisting with various jobs on sets of his father's films.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}} Among his early credits included uncredited roles in directing films such as ''[[Few Dollars for Django]]'' (1966) and ''A Ghentar si muore facile'' (1967). Many of Castellari's early works are [[Spaghetti Western]]s.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}} He received his official credited directorial debut with ''[[Renegade Riders]]'' (1967), a film shot in Spain and influenced by [[Sidney J. Furie]]'s film ''[[The Appaloosa]]'' (1966).{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}} After releasing the Western ''[[Kill Them All and Come Back Alone]]'' (1968), Castellari did a [[Macaroni war]] film titled ''[[Eagles Over London]]''.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}}
By the early 1970s, Castellari began exploring other genres as well such as the thriller ''[[Cold Eyes of Fear]]'' (1971), the comedy ''Hector the Mighty'' (1972), and the comedic swashbuckler ''[[The Loves and Times of Scaramouche]]'' (1976).{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}} He directed his first ''[[poliziotteschi]]'' film with ''[[High Crime]]'' starring [[Franco Nero]].{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}} Nero and Castellari formed a relationship with the film and work together for seven features.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}}
Castellari later noted his work with Nero, stating "I think that to have an actor like Franco Nero is one of the best things that can happen to a director...if it had been possible, I would have made all my films with him"<ref name="Hughes">{{cite book |last=Hughes |first=Howard |title=Cinema Italiano: The Complete Guide from Classics to Cult |publisher=[[I.B.Tauris]] |isbn=9781848856073 |date=30 April 2011 |page=270 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C5_3AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA270 |oclc=756484421}}</ref> Nero would work with Castellari on the Western ''[[Keoma (film)|Keoma]]'' which was only a mild success{{Clarify|reason=vague|date=April 2015}} in Italy on its release, but would later be praised as one of Castellari's best films.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}}<ref name="Hughes"/> Castellari created further ''poliziotteschi'' films in the late 1970s as well as the war film ''[[The Inglorious Bastards]]''.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}} Castellari was offered to direct the film ''[[Zombi 2]]'', but turned it down as he did not feel he would be the right director for a horror film.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=290}}{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=291}}
In the 1980s the popularity of the ''[[poliziotteschi]]'' faltered and Castellari's film ''[[Day of the Cobra]]'' with Franco Nero was not popular in the box office.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=291}} Castellari followed it up with ''[[Great White (1981 film)|The Last Shark]]'', a film about a small beach town terrorized by a bloodthirsty great white shark.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=291}} The film was withdrawn from theaters after Universal Studios sued the production for being too similar to the film ''[[Jaws (film)|Jaws]]''.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=291}} Castellari next film ''[[1990: The Bronx Warriors]]'' was a surprise hit that created a small wave of films from Italy inspired by the [[John Carpenter]] film ''[[Escape from New York]]''.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=291}} The mid-to-late 1980s work for Castellari was work made for foreign markets such as ''[[Light Blast]]'' (1985), ''[[Striker (1987 film)|Striker]]'' and ''[[Sinbad of the Seven Seas]]''.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=291}}
In the 1990s, Castellari's work was mostly dedicated to made-for-television productions.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=291}} Castellari made a comeback film in 2010 with ''Caribbean Basterds'', a film which received a theatrical release in Italy which was a rarity for locally made genre films at the time.{{sfn|Curti|2013|p=291}} Castellari cameoed as a German mortar squad commander in ''[[The Inglorious Bastards]]'', and [[Quentin Tarantino]] cast Castellari in the cameo role of a German general in his film ''[[Inglourious Basterds]]'' (2009), which was inspired by Castellari's 1978 film.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://variety.com/2009/film/markets-festivals/enzo-and-tarantino-basterds-brothers-1118003930/ |title=Enzo and Tarantino: 'Basterds' brothers |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=19 May 2009 |access-date=20 March 2010 |first=Nick |last=Vivarelli |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090829123400/http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118003930.html?categoryid=13&cs=1 |archive-date=29 August 2009 |publisher=[[Reed Business Information]] |agency=Reed Elsevier Inc. |url-status=live}}</ref>
In October 2014, Castellari was awarded at the [[Almería Western Film Festival]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.diariodealmeria.es/ocio/Almeria-Western-Castellari-Giuliano-Gemma_0_840816528.html |title=El Almería Western Film homenajeará a Enzo G. Castellari y Giuliano Gemma |first=D. |last=Martínez |date=4 September 2014 |access-date=10 March 2019 |newspaper=[[Diario de Almería]] |publisher=[[Joly Digital]]}}</ref>
In 2025, Castellari was honoured at the [[58th Sitges Film Festival]] with the Time Machine Award (The Màquina del Temps).<ref name="spa:sitges">{{cite web|url=https://sitgesfilmfestival.com/en/noticies/list-confirmed-artists-sitges-2025|title=List of Confirmed Artists at Sitges 2025|website=[[Sitges Film Festival]]|date=22 September 2025|access-date=23 September 2025}}</ref>
==Filmography== {| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" ! width="15%" rowspan="2" scope="col" | Title !! width="4%" rowspan="2" scope="col" | Year!! colspan="4" scope="col" | Credited as !! width="10%" rowspan="2" scope="col" class="unsortable"| Notes !! width="1%" rowspan="2" scope="col" class="unsortable" |{{abbr|Ref(s)|Reference(s)}} |- ! width=6% |Director!! width=6% | Writer!! width=6% |Producer!! width=6% | Other |- !scope="row"|''[[Renegade Riders]]'' |1966 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | Credited as E.G. Rowland |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films">{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030813203031/http://www.enzogcastellari.com/films2.htm|url=http://www.enzogcastellari.com/films2.htm|publisher=Enzo G Castellari Official Website|access-date=9 March 2015|archive-date=13 August 2003 |title=Films}}</ref> |- !scope="row"|''[[Any Gun Can Play]]'' |1967 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[One Dollar Too Many]]'' |1968 | {{yes}} | | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Johnny Hamlet]]'' |1968 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Kill Them All and Come Back Alone]]'' |1968 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Eagles Over London]]'' |1969 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Cold Eyes of Fear]]'' |1970 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Hector the Mighty]]'' |1971 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Sting of the West]]'' |1972 | {{yes}} | | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[High Crime]]'' |1973 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | Reporter |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Street Law (film)|Street Law]]'' |1974 | {{yes}} | | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Cry, Onion!]]'' |1975 | {{yes}} | | | | Mexican in the market |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|{{sort|Loves and Times of Scaramouche |''[[The Loves and Times of Scaramouche]]''}} |1975 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Keoma (film)|Keoma]]'' |1976 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|{{sort|Big Racket|''[[The Big Racket]]''}} |1976 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | Cowardly Storekeeper |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|{{sort|Heroin Busters|''[[The Heroin Busters]]''}} |1978 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|{{sort|Inglorious Bastards|''[[The Inglorious Bastards]]''}} |1977 | {{yes}} | | | | German Officer |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|{{sort|House by the Edge of the Lake|''[[The House by the Edge of the Lake]]''}} |1979 | {{yes}} | | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref>{{cite book |last=Curti |first=Roberto |title=Italian Gothic Horror Films, 1970–1979 |publisher=[[McFarland & Company|McFarland]] |isbn=978-1476629605 |date=23 August 2017 |page=211 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RAFFAQAACAAJ&pg=PA211}}</ref> |- !scope="row"|{{sort|Shark Hunter|''[[The Shark Hunter]]''}} |1979 | {{yes}} | | | | Il killer |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Day of the Cobra]]'' |1980 | {{yes}} | | | | Warehouse Thug |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Great White (1981 film)|The Last Shark]]'' |1981 | {{yes}} | | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[1990: The Bronx Warriors]]'' |1982 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | Vice President (daughter Stefania Girolami was Ann) |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|{{sort|New Barbarians|''[[The New Barbarians]]''}} |1982 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | Credited as Enzo Girolami |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Escape from the Bronx]]'' |1983 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | Radio Operator |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Tuareg – The Desert Warrior]]'' |1984 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | Prison Guard |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Light Blast]]'' |1985 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Hammerhead (1987 film)|Hammerhead]]'' |1987 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Jonathan of the Bears]]'' |1994 | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |- !scope="row"|''[[Caribbean Basterds]]'' |2010 | {{yes}} | | | | |style="text-align:center;"|<ref name="enzo-films" /> |}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Bibliography== * {{cite book|last=Curti|first=Roberto|title=Italian Crime Filmography, 1968–1980|publisher=McFarland|isbn=9780786469765|year=2013}}
==External links== * {{IMDb name|0144758|Enzo G. Castellari}} * [http://www.searchmytrash.com/articles/enzogcastellari(12-07).shtml Enzo G. Castellari-biography] on (re)Search my Trash *[http://www.midnight-media.net Castellari: Action Italian Style] tribute publication dedicated to Enzo G. Castellari and his films
{{Enzo G. Castellari}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Castellari, Enzo G.}} [[Category:1938 births]] [[Category:German-language film directors]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Film directors from Rome]] [[Category:Spaghetti Western directors]] [[Category:Giallo film directors]] [[Category:Poliziotteschi directors]]