Serpico (1973)
Genre: Biography / Crime
Duration: 130 minuten
Country:
United States / Italy
Directed by: Sidney Lumet
Stars: Al Pacino, John Randolph and Jack Kehoe
IMDb score:
7,7 (149.577)
Releasedate: 18 December 1973
Serpico plot
"Many of his fellow officers considered him the most dangerous man alive - An honest cop."
The agent Serpico refuses, as the rest of his colleagues do, to take part of the money that the agents regularly take from the local criminals. No one wants to work with Serpico, and he is in constant danger of being placed in life-threatening situations by his partners.
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Actors and actresses
Officer Frank Serpico
Sidney Green
Tom Keough
Captain McClain
Laurie
Leslie Lane
Bob Blair
Pasquale
D. A. Tauber
Rubello
Reviews & comments
Film Pegasus (moderator films)
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- 31491 messages
- 5627 votes
There are more films about the cop who wants to tackle corruption within his own ranks. But most of the time that makes for cliché Hollywood vehicles. Serpico is a bit rawer and more realistic. The figures have become caricatures, Pacino is not yet the screaming alpha man here (which he does in other films). Al Pacino really plays the tiles of the roof here.
Sidney Lumet broke through with his debut film 12 Angry Men and not much later also made the fascinating The Hill with Sean Connery in an underestimated role. With The Offense he already survived the sixties and successor Serpico is Lumet at the top again. With later films such as Dog Day Afternoon, Murder on the Orient Express and The Verdict, this is the genre he mainly masters. His foray into The Wiz is proof that he can't handle all genres.
Beautiful music, appropriate setting, appropriate atmosphere and structure, ... A somewhat forgotten classic that should definitely be seen!
Translated from Dutch · View original
Dievegge
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- 3235 messages
- 8332 votes
As an adherent of method acting, Al Pacino really went undercover in dangerous New York neighborhoods to prepare for his role. He spent a lot of time with the real Frank Serpico, whose appearance and way of moving he imitated. He adapted his speaking style with an Italian accent and a nasal voice. His outbursts of anger and attempts at seduction involve quite a bit of improvisation. The different undercover disguises provided nice possibilities. The scenes were shot in reverse chronological order, so they had to gradually trim his beard and mustache. He was literally cut out for that role.
It starts with the sound of a siren and the ambulance ride, after which we jump back more than ten years, as if the injured Serpico is watching his life pass before his eyes. Just before that jump, his eye is zoomed in.
Whistleblowers rarely end well, and Serpico has experienced that firsthand. As an individual with good intentions, he experienced peer pressure to go along with the corrupt system. Not only was the taking of money a problem, but also the excessive use of force and the artificial increase in the number of arrests.
Serpico's Italian background is emphasized in some family scenes and when he loudly sings an aria by Puccini. He had a hard time finding allies, including in his private life. He had more faith in animals than in people. He owned a bobtail, a white mouse that can detect heroin and a pale pink Moluccan cockatoo. The real Frank Serpico, who in recent years protested against police brutality, will live on in the memory thanks to this biopic.
Translated from Dutch · View original
T.O.
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- 2508 messages
- 2905 votes
A story with relatively little 'action' perhaps, but Lumet solves that by showing the developments through a multitude of short, fast scenes. He only rests for the most important parts and gives space to Pacino's acting fireworks. Well done.
Beautiful images further of that typical, almost bankrupt New York from the 70s where both the streets and the inhabitants are subject to decay.
To return to the short scenes: they also give ample scope to Serpico's fascinating dressing up. I was hoping to find a collage on Google Images, but this is the best I could find about it: click.
Translated from Dutch · View original
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