Serpico Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
Many of his fellow officers considered him the most dangerous man alive - An honest cop.
Frank Serpico is a young, inexperienced cop who starts out on patrol. Later, he starts to work as an undercover cop who busts all sorts of criminals, but mostly drug dealers and pushers. Since Serpico is a young man living in the 70's, he lives as one. His image, based on how others look on him, shows him as just a 'hippie' and the criminals he busts have no idea he is really an undercover officer. Everything is working out well, except the money situation. Serpico refuses to accept money, as the other officers do. He feels this isn't right, and wants to expose the situation. Who he thought were his friends now turn into his enemies when Serpico takes the stand on a grand jury investigation. He continues to work undercover, and his life is placed into jeopardy at the hands of his colleagues.
| Al Pacino | Officer Frank Serpico |
| John Randolph | Chief Sidney Green |
| Jack Kehoe | Tom Keough |
| Biff McGuire | Capt. Insp. McClain |
| Barbara Eda-Young | Laurie |
| Cornelia Sharpe | Leslie Lane |
| Tony Roberts | Bob Blair |
| John Medici | Pasquale |
| Allan Rich | Dist. Atty. Herman Tauber |
| Norman Ornellas | Don Rubello |
| Edward Grover | Insp. Lombardo |
| Albert Henderson | Peluce |
| Hank Garrett | Malone |
| Damien Leake | Joey |
| Joseph Bova | Potts |
| Sidney Lumet |
7.70 out of 10 (18255 votes)
Visitor Reviews
Powerhouse Pacino.....
posted on 31 Jul 2009"Serpico" is a powerful tale of an honest undercover cop named Frank Serpico, played with finesse by none other than Al Pacino, all dressed up like a hippie, complete with long hair and a beard.Serpico is one of the few honest cops in the New York police department who refuses to take any extra money or bribe, unlike his fellow-cops and partners. He begins to find it difficult carrying on with them, as they are not too happy with him not co-operating. Serpico attempts to bring the police corruption to light.Al Pacino turns in a terrific performance as Serpico. His anguish and anger shows to the fullest and one totally sympathizes with him as the movie progresses. One particular memorable scene, when he makes an arrest and brings the man to the precinct, shows Pacino displaying anger like never before. Tony Roberts is great in a supporting role as Serpico's friend, Bob.Sidney Lumet directs it well, but the movie could have been a tad shorter; it feels like we didn't really need to see some of the scenes which the film could've easily done away with. The editing could have been better. Also, the background score was all wrong in some of the scenes.Those are the only couple of minuses as far as I can see.All in all, "Serpico" is a must watch for Pacino fans and for any movie buff in general.
Prima Donna from another planet
posted on 10 Jun 2009Meant to be a character study as well as an examination of police corruption, the film is, ultimately, unsatisfactory. About halfway through the film, Pacino's constant, unvaried shouting becomes tedious. The film is not a balanced look at police corruption or a compelling character study. We don't connect the loose hip Greenwich Village Serpico with the cop he that is. He never connects with his fellow officers or for that matter anyone, he's too busy shouting them down or doing one of his street theater undercover routines. None of the supporting characters count or make an impression;it's a showcase for Pacino and his character eventually comes off as a self-pitying,self-righteous, prima donna. Lumet and Pacino are better represented by "Dog Day Afteroon"(1975). And Lumet's "Prince of the City"(1981) is a more complex,convincing, and focused study of informing and police corruption. On the plus side, Serpico has a good feel for location and provokes thought. Otherwise, it feels dated,the scenes with his living partners are soapy, and those with his parents are moldy. The score by Theodorakis is inappropriate,the dialog ,especially in the domestic scenes, is trite,and the ending disappointments. In its day, this might have been an eye-opener, now the effect may be the opposite.
Paco.
posted on 10 Jun 2009You'll love to see the calm and compassionate Frank "Paco" Serpico in the beginning of the movie, who never takes money and is never contaminated by the wrath of participating in police brutality -- the African American kid who was abused gains Serpico's favor because of this. Watch how Paco selflessly gives up his girlfriend in the bathtub scene when she tells him what is to happen in two months unless he marries her. And from being the honest cop and gentleman, you also get to see an intense Paco, with righteous fury after being countlessly taken by disappointment of the whole system being corrupt. And I didn't expect the 5 dollar puppy sheepdog to grow that big.I also recommend DOG DAY AFTERNOON. Both Serpico and that are excellent movies documenting true to life events in the form of narrative motion picture. Both from Sidney Lumet.
Pacino shines early in his career
posted on 01 Feb 2009Sidney Lumet's Serpico got Al Pacino a Golden Globe and an Oscar nomination for his performance as an honest cop.This was a gritty performance that focused on Pacino for 99% of the movie. I don't know any other actor that could probably pull off this performance. Sure, he had support from a fine cast and the New York location was critical, and Mikis Theodorakis score was beautiful, but this was Pacino through and through.While he seemed great in the Godfather, he really shows that he can act in this film.
A Disappointment from Two Cinema Greats
posted on 17 Jan 2009Any film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Al Pacino should be great, but "Serpico" is mediocre at best. Chronicling the true-life story of Frank Serpico, a police officer who exposed corruption in the NYPD, the film comes from that exquisite golden age of cinema, lasting from the late '60s through the late '70s, when paranoia infected the country and our most trusted and honored institutions were becoming suspect. It's got the grainy, neo-realistic feel that so many of the films from that time period had (and as many of Lumet's own films had), yet it never really works. Lumet's pacing is poor; no scene lasts longer than a minute or two. While one would think this would make for a film with some narrative drive to it, just the opposite happens. It's as if in the editing room all of the important parts of each scene got left out, and what we've been given as a final product is an outline of Serpico's story. No characters beyond Pacino's is really developed, and even he struggles to make something substantial out of his role. This came directly on the heels of "The Godfather" from the year before, the film that put Pacino on the map. "Serpico" gives testament to Pacino's abilities and range as an actor; his performance is quite different from that of Michael Corleone. But for me, it's not until his mesmerizing performance in "Dog Day Afternoon" from 1975 that Pacino really flexes his acting muscles and shows what a true cinematic treasure he is. 26 years later, Pacino was to star in "The Insider," another thriller where he played a character who helps to expose corruption, this time in the world of corporate America. My advice is to see "Serpico" for the place it holds in Pacino's career, but then see "The Insider" for a suspenseful, terrific movie.Grade: C
Worth a look
posted on 02 Jan 2009Gritty true-life police drama. DVD review.An honest cop (Pacino) and his friend (Roberts) try to get help in cleaning up the corrupt New York police force.Long realistic movie that starts off with an injured Pacino and then recounts the events leading up to the shooting. He's a small guy who's considered weird by the other cops. One funny scene has him getting mistaken for a toilet molester. Pacino decides to work as a plain-clothes officer and eventually gets moved from station to station. Finally he can trust no-one in the force and could soon be set up to be shot. The other cops in the movie aren't as nasty as expected - they're just decent guys on the take. Tony Roberts plays the SAME role in all of his movies. The best parts of this picture were the realistic settings and the good casting.Serpico is well worth a look.
Al Pacino or not, Attempting to bring a voluminous book to one little old Screenplay about Cop Corruption just doesn't cut it.
posted on 21 Nov 2008Leading off, let's first of all say that this is on film that has a really good look and feel of New York City (at least as far as this Chicago boy can see; having at least visited there several times in my adult life.); at least in the way that they used the city, identified as being Astoria, Queens, for its location shooting.There is no reason that we should look at the adaption of a book like Peter Maas' "Serpico" into a film as being some sort of Holy Crusade or altruistic venture designed to elucidate corrupt practices existing or previously existing in any Police Department, be it the N.Y.P.D. or any other. The Movie business, although speaking in selfless, lofty and unselfish terms during the annual Academy Awards Show, in actuality lives and dies with the almighty barometer known as "the Bottom Line." O$CAR'$ significance lies less with the Art Museum and more with the U.$. Trea$ury.There is no denying that this is a major motion picture. One did not get Al Pacino for some pot-boiler, meant to get shown at the Drive-In Theatres, before being quickly dispatched to TV, Home Video or perhaps directly to Public Domain. Such star power demands a really good supporting cast; what with John Randolph, Tony Roberts, Jack Kehoe and Hank Garrett. Interestingly, there are some actors featured in the "uncredited" category such as Judd Hirsch and F. Murray Abraham! Where SERPICO really has a radical departure from the usual, even the much better than the usual Cop Flick is its central subject of dishonest practices and their rampant widespread institutionalization throughout the Police Department. This subject is not one that is easily explored and portrayed on the screen. A movie must go very deep in underlying foundation exposition in bringing any true understanding to such a problem. It isn't enough to portray just a simply one dimensional scene as; Wrong Doer is confronted by "Bad Cop", usually an older White Guy. Wrong Doer gives "Bad Cop" some money or an envelope. "Bad Cop" winks, nods and leaves.It's not that we opposed to any discussion of corrupt practices in any unit of Government on any level, be it Local, County, State or Federal. We object to well meaning, but strictly shallow water excursions; when what are needed is some deep exploratory dives with full SCUBA Gear.The film attempts to put in 2 hours or so what a 500 page book would find difficult to cover. To their credit, some of the most poignant scenes come early on in the film. They are the short business involving Frank Serpico's (Al Pacino) and his veteran Uniformed Cop partner's having lunch at the diner. When Serpico orders the roast beef sandwich (I think) and it comes to him with very fatty meat, the old guy tells him just to take it, inasmuch the Cops are fed there for gratis. This little example using a petty incident is trivial in its effect on the movie, but profound in understanding just what a Cop faces from day one. Everybody wants to influence you and your job, everybody; that's to one extent or other.The 2nd scene involves the forcible Rape that Serpico went out of his way to clear-up by arrest, only to find out that his efforts were drowned out by the daily bureaucratic grind of the Police Department. The lesson learned would seem to be that one shouldn't extend oneself beyond the necessary. This is not easy to take for some guys, like Serpico, for example.Any story that wishes to deal with such a problem as in the story here must look much deeper. Remember, for any person to be in a more choice position on a Police Department has to rely on some extracurricular influence to both get and keep such a spot. Such influencing agents would be ones "connections", be they to some politicians, some prominent clergyman or some captain of business or industry. The connections are called by several different terms. It may be one's "Clout" or "Drag". The influential benefactor may be called by say your "Chinaman" (Chicago) or your "Rabbi" (New York), or any other local term.This is the real cause of corruption and it runs deep and is never spoken of or even recognized to exist. After all, those promotional exams are strictly on the level. Aren't they?NOTE: Mr. Ryan's expertise comes from his 35 year career on the Chicago Police Department; where he had varied assignments from Beat Cop in the most crime-ridden, economically depressed neighborhoods, to Directing Traffic in Loop (Downtown), to Motorcycle Cop, to Youth Division School Unit and finally in The Detective Division's Missimg Persons Bureau.
Beardface
posted on 21 Nov 2008Review edited for IMDb due to word limit. See wiredonmovies.com for full review."Serpico," its many flaws notwithstanding, is far from being a terribly exciting motion picture. Granted, it is based on the true story of an incorruptible Italian-American cop named Frank Serpico who brought down an entire police precinct that was "in on the take." But true stories aren't always warranting for great films. That's the primary reason Hollywood always spices stories up by inserting scenes that never occurred in real life and altering the facts."Serpico" could have used a bit of altering. It's just not interesting enough to sustain its material for two and a half hours. Perhaps a ninety-minute movie would have done it justice, but its running time is far too long for such a film. But even then I could probably say it's a well-made film. Too bad it feels so sloppy and cheap.Let me briefly rephrase that in a nutshell: It's not a bad movie. It just could have been a lot better. Sidney Lumet should be ashamed. He should have fired the editor the first day on the job. Here we have many different scenes spliced together, in apparently random order, and an unbearably dingy audio track that *plays during (and over) conversations!* Music is essential to all film, but it has to be used correctly. You can't just play a soundtrack throughout an entire motion picture.But Lumet doesn't even do that. He plays it in the worst spots he possibly could. It's as if he went through the entire movie, marked down each scene where there shouldn't be music in the background, then applied it. Even if you're going to burden the audience with music and dialogue blending together at the same time, at least make it *good* music!Many scenes seem pointless and badly executed. Pacino is a standout but the rest of the film is a failure. The acting (save Pacino) is stiff and the dialogue is corny (save Serpico's, but even his gets cheesy sometimes). It's as if everything were scripted by an author and just fed to the actors. Oh, wait, that's exactly what happened. My bad.Did all these people who claim this is the best police corruption film ever made witness the same mediocre blend of poor technicalities and acting and music that I did? Did they not see the horrendous nature of the random interactions being spliced together with separate ones? Did they not notice that every time a crucial character moment came around this really, really bad music started to play over the actors'?The plot is pointless because I've already delved into it--a downtown police precinct is corrupt and they can't stand Serpico's morality. So they decide to plot against him and try to murder him. They fail. First we get Serpico being led away in a car. ("He's been shot by a cop!") Bloodstained and in a daze, we see Al Pacino's bearded portrayal of Serpico drifting in and out of consciousness.Then we get the non-introduced flashbacks to the beginning.But Lumet presents Serpico as a caricature, playing by all the rules and fitting snugly into a giant cliché. Al Pacino rises above these clichés, of course, with his hard-edged performance. But imagine how much more powerful it could have been if the director and scriptwriter had liberated him and set him free. Maybe we'd get a performance to equal that in "Scarface." But alas, Pacino is simply overburdened with juggling these clichés and only manages to make the character somewhat realistic. Even then he goes through the same routines that all the clean characters go through. (Even Sly made it more realistic in "Cop Land.")I saw a documentary once about the real Frank Serpico and what he did after the film was released. He turned into a hermit. He still looks the same, with his beard and all, but it'd be interesting to watch the film with him and have him point out all the things he actually did and said as opposed to what's in the movie. I'm not saying Serpico was corrupt. I'm sure everything is true. I'm sure he was a very nice and moralistic man.But there's a difference between being a moralistic man and a naive idiot like Serpico in the movie. Pacino makes him smarter than he appears on paper but read some of his lines to yourself and notice the sheer stupidity of it all.Pacino's performance is a knockout one, which is why "Serpico" gets a fair rating in my book and a weak recommendation. But it takes its time getting places, too many scenes are out of place, the music is more often distracting than not and the rest of the cast are insufferable. They could easily have brought down Pacino but he's too strong for that. He's a fighter, just like Serpico, which may explain why he took on the role. Too bad Lumet had to interfere with his performance. Too bad the music had to interfere with the dialogue. Too bad Lumet and the music had to be there at all. Just imagine what Scorsese could have done with this, and how liberating he could have made the character and his interactions. Here we just have a stone caricature of a real man, and it isn't too terribly impressive.3/5
Fine job.
posted on 19 Sep 2008One can't know what the director, Sidney Lumet, was aiming for -- a commercial success probably -- but he achieved more than that. Frank Serpico wasn't a hippy. He disapproved of marijuana because it was illegal. And his face was pock-marked and he wasn't as handsome as Al Pacino. But he was in his way equally saintly.First of all, what a picture of New York City, in all its grime and without any splendor. There's the Williamsberg Bridge (I think) and not much else in the way of landmarks. Nobody eats at Lutece. The whole place is thoroughly louche.The acting, with the exception of Tony Roberts, is superior.And -- maybe this hit me differently -- it seems to be a movie about police corruption, and of course it is, but it's more than that. The most moving part of the film is a subtext dealing with loneliness. Frank Serpico loses everything, beginning with his girl friend, up to and including his position on the police force. In the lingo of sociometry he'd be a social isolate. Nobody wants to have anything to do with him, except perhaps his family of whom we see little, or maybe an impotent friend who has Princetonian connections in the mayor's office.Oh, it's tough to squeal on your comrades. We all know that. And Serpico suffers in the most saintly way, torn between loyalties to the group to which he belong and the greater values that inform (or are supposed to inform) our society. But what MAKES everything so difficult is that your best friends come to distrust and dislike you.All of us root for Serpico's triumph. We want the NYPD to be cleaned out. (Is it?) But who among us would throw away the casual but still meaningful bonds that we make at work? Would you? I don't know if I would. That, it seems to me, is the principal theme of this movie. Police corruption is the MacGuffin.
A real life horror story
posted on 21 Jul 2008This is a great film based on the true story of New York City cop Frank Serpico. Serpico, it seems, is alone in his goal of being an honest cop in a corrupt department. His life is constantly in danger. Not because of criminals, but because of dirty cops trying to protect themselves. Al Pacino is great, as usual, in the lead. The film covers a time frame of many years, thus my only complaint with the film is that it is, at times, difficult to keep track everything that we see happen. In a way, this film is scarier than any horror film you'll see. To think what money can do to people.
Realistic movie with a gripping and gritty story.
posted on 25 May 2008The movie tells the true story of Frank 'Paco' Serpico who was about the only honest cop of the entire New York police department at his time. The movie provides a realistic view in the corrupt and tough world of the New York police and tells the story of Serpico in an intriguing and realistic, perhaps maybe even documentary like way."Serpico" is a movie with a typical fantastic '70's atmosphere and it's a movie that still holds up today. This is mainly thanks to the fantastic story of the movie and the way it is told. Yep, they really don't make movies like this anymore. I think "Serpico" may already be regarded as a 'classic'.Actually the story itself or concept isn't that terribly original compared to many other movies from the same period. Still this movie distinct itself from most of those movies, thanks to the perfect directing from Sidney Lumet. Also Pacino's acting and the fact that his movie is based on a true story makes this movie better than most others. Lumet and Pacino continued working together and later made the even better "Dog Day Afternoon" together.But fair is fair, even though Pacino is fantastic, this is far from his best role. The 'explosion' he later used for his characters in movies is still missing here and it seems like he's holding back. I also think that his Oscar nomination he deserved for this movie was also a bit too much credit for him. Pacino was just a young beginning actor at the time (He had just done his first big role and movie; "The Godfather".) and he obviously had still a lot of learning to do.The rest of the cast consists out of unknown actors (with the exception of apparently Oscar winner F. Murray Abraham in one of his first small movie roles, to be honest I didn't even noticed him.) but for a movie like this a cast with unknown actors work really well. It keeps the focus on the movie's its intriguing story better. Apparently there is a lot of hate for it but I really liked the musical score by Mikis Theodorakis. It was really fitting with the movie its atmosphere. All in all this is a already 'classic' typical '70's cop flick in the style of, for instance "The French Connection" and is an absolute must see.9/10
Great character study with unsatisfactory ending
posted on 16 Apr 2008Excellent movies have to leave me feeling fully satisfied at the conclusion. "Serpico" did not do this although it was an excellent character study.I rooted for New York City police officer Frank Serpico throughout this non-fiction movie. Courageous and honest, he battled corruption endemic among colleagues and supervisors for many years. Al Pacino was outstanding portraying someone whose personality became unbearable to friends and allies as his efforts to report illegal activities were constantly stymied.Toward the end of the movie, Serpico finally achieved some success when New York City's mayor appointed a commission to investigate police corruption and he testified about what was essentially organized crime. This victory came at great cost to his well-being and romantic life.Unfortunately, the movie's end is unclear about whether justice prevailed. The epilogue says nothing about what happened to the movie's characters other than its namesake. I had numerous questions. Were supervisors like the commissioner involved in the payoff system or were they merely intentionally ignoring it? Were any police brass indicted or convicted? Which of the characters that I came to hate during the movie were made to pay for their crimes?Answers to these and other questions would have induced me to give "Serpico" a higher rating. I wanted to give it a 9 because I was riveted enough to watch several scenes three or more times.But, basic facts are important. Even if I conceded that the movie could have been made before there was a resolution to the corruption investigation, I still would penalize "Serpico" for not at least informing us viewers about the probe's progress, who Serpico implicated in his testimony and in his interviews with The New York Times and others, and which characters were at risk of prison.Before writing my conclusion, I want to say something about what I consider numerous ridiculous posts on the IMDb message board. Several people said, in essence, that Serpico lacked character because of the way he treated people. The posters are looking at the trees, not the forest.In fact, Serpico demonstrated great character because he was courageous in fighting a corrupt system although going along would have been personally beneficial. The movie is a great character portrayal because it shows how this battle turned an offbeat, but relatively sedate person into someone who was often temperamental, obstinate, arrogant, and nasty.Serpico had many flaws, but his fortitude and ethics are far more important. At minimum, I would assess him as of having far superior character to any of his colleagues who participated in the corruption or knew about it and did nothing even if they were pristine outside of the office.Some of the comments I read remind me of the debate about Oskar Schindler of "Schindler's List." He had numerous flaws too, but the importance of what he did meant he had great character.Back to the review. As a character portrayal, "Serpico" deserves a 9. It also deserves a 9 for its portrayal of Serpico's conflicts with his colleagues and its ability to keep viewers interested in his struggles.As a movie, though, "Serpico" deserves a lower score because it is a bit too long, some scenes about his personal life could be edited better, the timeline and length of Serpico's police service are unclear, some of the supplementary characters are indistinguishable at times, and, most importantly, I was left unsatisfied at the end because I didn't know what happened to the bad guys.I gave "Serpico" a 7.ZWrite
Diogenes, Have You Looked In The NYPD?
posted on 13 Apr 2008For his second Academy Award nomination and his first in the Best Actor category, Al Pacino essayed the title role in Serpico, the true story of an incorruptible cop and a man who Diogenes could have ceased his search for an honest man with.As I'm sure many idealistic young people do, Frank Serpico joined the New York Police Department with hopes of making a difference in society. What he found was a systemic culture of corruption there and faced his own crisis of conscience. Nobody's ever decided where the line is to be drawn. A free meal at a local diner all the way to big payoffs from drug dealers. The police in this film run the gamut, except for Pacino who won't take a dime. His very honesty makes him a marked man.The only problem that I have with Serpico is that he tends to be too self righteous. I do wonder if the real Frank Serpico, who is very much alive, is that way. He seems to repel all possible allies. Personally, I think at some point he should have put his papers in and taken the lesser pension at a point way before the near tragedy which does happen to him.If the script makes him too self righteous, Al Pacino's skill as a player and Sidney Lumet's direction level it out and make Serpico someone we can sympathize with. There's a lot subtlety there in every move, in every facial expression, Al Pacino has even under that heavy beard.Serpico got a nomination for Best Screenplay adapted from another source, it was adapted from Peter Maas's biographical study. Al Pacino unfortunately lost the Best Actor Oscar that year to Jack Lemmon for Save the Tiger. Oddly enough Save the Tiger is about another man at a crossroads in his life and his choice is break the law.Sidney Lumet does love New York, so many of his good films are based and shot there. This one is no exception. I recognized many of the locations of the scenes. Every New Yorker ought to see this film just for that.And I think Diogenes can end his search.
A gentleman and a scholar
posted on 04 Feb 2008The real Frank Serpico is a gentleman and a scholar. He treats people with respect, be it a beggar on the street or your average Joe blow. Unlike Bo Dietl "One Tough Cop," Frank Serpico is the real McCoy. I've had the honor to meet him and found him to be friendly and an affable caring man. He does not brush you away and pretend you don't exist like Mr. Bo Dietl does to people that do not interest him or his career. Frank Serpico never let all the publicity go to his head as did...you know who. When the going gets tough and dangerous...I want Frank Serpico , who not only served his country in Korea, but was a true hero cop, by my side.
One man against the rest....
posted on 26 Jan 2008Frank Serpico is an honest, hardworking and good cop who finds it difficult to fit in the police force in NY in the seventies. Besides being a cop he is also into the more alternative life-style of that period of time and on that account he finds himself even more alienated from his colleagues. He lets his hair and beard grow and dresses very hip to the irritation of his superiors.The movie portrays the police force as thoroughly corrupt, the cops as lazy bastards and the superiors as more interested in the image of the force than doing the necessary and right thing which is in this case to conduct a proper investigation into the allegations made by Serpico.As mentioned in almost every review I've read on this movie Pacinos performance is outstanding and very believable. And if you like the dusty, old, brownish colors so typical of films shot in NY in the seventies this film is a must.You could say that this movie falls into the category "one man against the system" which has been a theme in so many American movies. I don't know why this is a common theme in American movies but maybe it has to do with the American dream; that everything is possible for the strong individual. Although the story is good I couldn't help wonder if he – in the real story - didn't get more comfort, sympathy and help than was portrayed in the movie. The way I see it is, that America is still very much in love with the story of the hero who can pull through without too much help from his surroundings and beat the system. And despite Serpicos hippie attitude and the fact that he is not physically superior he is still a hero very much like John Wayne. Of course without the most annoying and stereotyped clichés but still he beats the system… It is as if he had gotten more help it would sort of have ruined the story. Am I wrong? /Simon
Not that good
posted on 11 Jan 2008For mysterious reasons, here we have a film that's revered as few. Especially in Greece, where I live, it's considered a classic due to the score having been written by Mikis Theodorakis, a composer with a semi-god status. Sure enough, the music is brilliant, but completely out of context. It just doesn't fit to this movie, period. Now about Al, he deals very well with what he's got, but what he's got is a poser 70s film. Yes we have a story that has actually happened, but the representation and the dialogues are annoyingly stylish and some characters (especially the females) are void of content and personality. It doesn't work. In fact it's a lesson of how to make a real story appear unrealistic.
This movie made Frank Serpico a legend
posted on 18 Dec 2007No matter how generous Frank Serpico's deed was, he still was a snitch, who was betraying his colleagues. It was a very brave and generous act, but I think that it's wrong to peach on your colleagues, since it wasn't a question of life and death, but he had it's own opinion. Many people reasonably hated him. This film gives us an opportunity to put ourselves in his position. To him being a policeman was not only a way to make a living, it was what he always wanted to be. He wanted to be a good cop. No wonder he felt bad, surrounded by corrupted cops, who wanted to make him feel bad about himself because he's not taking bribes, like it was something disgraceful. This film shows how brave he actually was, because not only he went through a deep psychological pressure, he was risking his life too. Needless to say how brilliant Al Pacino was in this film.
Response to 'MovieAddict2005 on 'Serpico'
posted on 27 Nov 2007Beofre I go on; I gave this a 9 out of ten because it truly is worthy of it - a fairly low budget film that's a classic, and watchable time after time.Felt compelled to write this not just to comment on the film, but the absolute load of toss that MovieAddict wrote - I could go on for hours pointing out the mistakes that he made in relation to the story, but that would take far too much of my time. Suffice to say that his comments are directly opposite to that of other viewers' comments - obviously a non conformist - hats off to an individuals I say - well, usually anyway, but undividuals with no taste? - come on man, its fantastic. What's the point in adding crap to a true story when the facts are good enough? Think you need to re-evaluate yourself - good luck.Al Pacino can do no wrong - classic actor in a classic film.
Acting 101
posted on 19 Oct 2007The plot of this picture is more than decent. You have a police man (Al Pacino) and his struggle/fight and it's all based on a real (life) story.What really helps this movie, is Al Pacino. He's acting his heart out in this movie. And that alone would/should have earned this movie a 10 out of 10. But because it is based on a true story, the plot sometimes doesn't move forward like it should. You could also say that Pacino is so dominant, that it brings the movie as a whole down.But in my eyes, he's the reason you should watch this movie. Before he did Scarface, he did this movie. And his performance matches his Tony Montana character/impersonation! :o)
YOUNG PACINO IN SMOOTH FORM!
posted on 27 Aug 2009One of Al Pacino's early triumphs immediately after THE GODFATHER and he seems relaxed and comfortable as the heroic cop who got shafted working for the NYPD in the 1960's. Filled with great New York character actors, nice gritty N.Y. atmosphere and only the presence of Cornelia Sharpe (one of Al's girlfriends) brings things down, although she looks perfect for her character.A 7 out of 10. Best performance = Mr. Pacino. Tony Roberts plays his usual yuppie (can I trust him?)type suit. Sidney Lumet is a wonderful director, greatly under-appreciated since the late 50's and certainly an actor's director and his book is fascinating on making films. One of the best '70's New York stories and the poster is famous.