Die Seven-Ups

This is not a great movie, but it evokes a time and a place, and a style that goes along with it. A gritty 70's police drama, it takes place in a New York winter of gray skies, bare trees, wet gutters, litter and graffiti, when the crooks had no cell phones, cars smelled of vinyl and exhaust fumes, and the computer was the noisy thing that printed the suspect's rap sheet on a roll of yellow paper. The acting, it must be admitted, is routine, but Roy Scheider and the rest portray an undercover squad of calm professionals to whom danger has become routine. The story manages to be interesting, punctuated by one exciting Popeye Doyle style car chase through the Sunday streets (judging by the light traffic) and up the Taconic State Parkway, and two nerve-wracking scenes in the belly of an automatic car wash. But for all the occasional bursts of violence, it's also a quiet story of a friendship that can't withstand the temptations of crime.

It is now clear that the true golden age of American film was from the mid-60s until just before the release of Star Wars. Before then, there was too much Hays Code-constricted pap. With Star Wars, the green light was lit for most films to be directed at children and morons, a practice which continues to this day. THE SEVEN-UPS, truth be told, contains a couple hackneyed lines of dialogue -- "We can do this the easy way, or we can do it the hard way" is one -- but I'm damned if I can find anything else wrong with it. (In fact, that line may not even have been stale when this film was made.) THE SEVEN-UPS demonstrates all that was right with the best films of the golden age: sparse dialogue, realistic acting, real locations (winter in a dirty New York has never looked better/worse), propulsive stories, and, yes, the best car chase ever filmed. Bill Hickman is the driver Scheider is chasing (you will recognize him from Bullitt), and the structure of the chase is fairly similar to the McQueen one, but I prefer Scheider's facial intensity here, the pacing, the terrific close-ups of the schoolchildren, and the shattering conclusion. (That VW bug going about 2 mph always bothers me in the Bullitt chase.) A stringy, screechy score by Don Ellis sets the perfect mood. THE SEVEN UPS: bleak, grim, action-oriented, grown-up. This is a film that couldn't be made today; there's no "gimmick" for the kiddies or preposterous ending. Thank you, Philip D'Antoni, Roy Scheider and Tony Lo Bianco: for as long as cop films are watched, THE SEVEN-UPS and its 1970s brethren (e.g., THE FRENCH CONNECTION), will set the standard.

One of my favorites. As a child, growing up in the NY Metro area in the late 60s and early 70s, I was often afforded the opportunity to visit NYC with my grandfather or father, as they conducted business there. The gritty, bustling, human, reality of that city, particularly in winter, have stayed with me.

This film very aptly captures the stark, cold, matter-of-fact feel of the NYC winter season, while keenly exposing the underbelly of the region's infamous underworld of crime and policing. A great snapshot of a place and a time and a culture.

And the car chase is simply amazing. At least on par with the one in "Bullitt", and surpassing the chase in "The French Connection". I can watch, time and again, as the suspension comes unstuck on that Plymouth Fury police cruiser barreling toward the GW Bridge in pursuit, as it lurches into that sharp right curve, bouncing and scraping into oncoming traffic. The stunt driving coordinator for that scene did "Bullitt" and "The French Connection" as well as many other noatable movie chases. Good acting, too, and a decent plot line. The musical score is edgy and compelling, and the cinematography and direction are top notch. A great, if underrated 1970s cop drama. A keeper. Not out on DVD yet, though.

Comparable in style and content to: The French Connection and Super Fly. Early 1970's cop dramas set in the bleak NYC winter months.

I saw 'Jaws' for the first time aged 7 but a good chunk of why i LOVED that film was Roy Scheider's Brody, I honestly can't imagine that film without him and his "SMILE YOU SON of a B...H"

Back to "The Seven-Up's"

I'd read a little about this film in movie magazines and books over the years but had never ever seen it until yesterday (thanks I have to say to YouTube), had wanted to see it for over 30 years and finally I have done so.

I'm with the majority of reviewers here...

it's gritty, well made with some good performances especially Schnider who with his brown leather jacket makes it his 'Bullitt' there is even a scene in which he removes the cool jacket to reveal a black turtle-neck and holster (a knowing nod to McQueen's classic film perhaps?) I have to admit that the first 40 minutes or so are kinda slow as with many of the 1970's cop thriller's/drama's of the time but stick with it as the pace builds and it gets better and better from this point.

The CAR CHASE is a stand-out as many here have stated (and might be worth the watch for this wonderfully filmed sequence alone) it starts out as a fairly ordinary affair but turns into a terrific pursuit.

Richard Lynch always had the look of a good villain and he is again here.

One of the reasons I'd wanted to see it (apart from Scheider) was I had read it almost played out like an unofficial "French Connection" sequel and it kinda does.

Tony Lo Bianco is terrific as Buddy's (Scheider) friend and he was also in Connection, it could be argued that this is a far better film than that films sequel and I would subscribe to this as the French Connection II was to me very disappointing.

Fans of 1970's Cop Thrillers will find much to enjoy in the second half of this film...the ending is terrific with shades of Blue Thunder's ending, speaking of which that is another terrific Roy Scheider film along with '2010', 'Jaws', 'Jaws II" (yes really, Scheider makes it thanks to Brody and that "I know what a shark looks like up close and I don't intend on going through that hell Again" speech) and "Marathon Man.

Roy was a terrific actor and has left us with some wonderful performances in some wonderful films...God Bless.

Now to track down "Sorcerer" (aka Wages of Fear) another I've never managed to see.

In this spin-off from the French Connection Roy Scheider is the leader of an elite team of cops (the titular soft drinks) who target high-profile crooks. New York's gangsters are being held to ransom by extortionists posing as the Seven-Ups and strike back against the cops.

Set against the bleak, imposing backdrop of early 70s New York, a time in which almost every building was decaying and all new architecture was a brutalist, concrete nightmare, the Seven-Ups is every bit as old school as it could possibly be. If you like the cold, paranoid atmosphere of movies like Ronin or the retro-style of Bullitt you'll definitely get a kick out of this.

Aesthetically, the film is horrific, with ugly people and bad fashion all over the place. It's an abomination of bad taste and degradation. But as a simple cop thriller it's got all the right moves. The stand-out car chase at the half-way point is quite impressive and it's a shame that it seems to have been forgotten among the ubiquitous "Best Car Chase" countdowns on TV and on the Internet.

Fans of the French Connection, cop thrillers or overlooked 70s movies that represent an attitude to filmmaking and life long since gone should definitely check it out.