Le Policeman

I'm surprised at all the negative reviews of this movie. yes, it's dark and depressing and certainly 'un-even', but I was glued to the screen. New York is the most fascinating city I've ever visited. Beautiful, cosmopolitan, fantastically wealthy and it sure never sleeps. But there's a dark side to "the big apple" and I honestly think this film captures that perfectly. It shows the poverty and despair of all those who haven't managed to live the dream and the siege mentality of the guys trying to maintain law and order. It's an utterly believable picture of day-to-day police work in a huge city. Much better than Cagney & Lacey & Kojak. Paul Newman plays a veteran patrol officer who's been on the streets too long and finds it hard to take anything seriously any more, until. You'll have to watch the movie to find out what lights his fire again. Ken Wahl (convincingly) plays his much younger partner and Ed Asner is superb as their hard-nosed Captain, struggling to be a cop, manager, politician, budget-holder and father-figure all at once. In fact, I would say Asner deserved an Oscar nomination. It was easily his best role. Fort Apache truly shows the real nature of a war against crime. Cops are under-funded and battling daily against impossible odds. All they have is each other. On the DOWN side, this movie does have 2 major flaws. First, it is horribly jolty and un-even. There's no plot at all and (to me) it felt throughout like a 'pilot' for a police soap opera that never made it to series. And second, the romance between Paul Newman and Rachel Ticotin is frankly ridiculous. They're both excellent actors and I'm one of the many millions who envy Newman his good looks, but, Ticotin is THIRTY THREE years younger than Newman. He could (almost) be her Grandfather! Fort Apache is a good movie though and I would say it paved the way for many current shows (such as Law & Order) which show law enforcement, warts and all. It's well worth seeing.

Paul Newman is terrific in a bit of a departure for him. There is a huge and talented cast at work here, and Pam Grier steals the show from everyone else. As a crackhead prostitute, she is completely mesmerizing. Rachel Ticotin also does great work as a drug addict/romantic interest for Newman. She does a scene walking down the street in only a nightgown that is memorable. All in all, this movie is good enough to be worth your time.

Some movies can rely on atmosphere and acting skills alone. This is one of them. The plot is flimsy, and the setting and most characterizations a bit unlikely (but extremely well acted), and the film might recycle many cop-series clichés, but why carp? I expected little more than a gritty urban cop-flick, which it is, but it also proves to be very successful as a heart-felt human drama, thanks in large part to a prime cast with Paul Newman, Edward Asner, Ken Wahl, Rachel Ticotin, Danny Aiello and Pam Grier in a small but extremely creepy part as a deranged homicidal hooker.

Paul Newman is excellent as a tough tired Officer Murphy and his partner, Ken Wahl, at least 30 years his junior, is one of the very few characters in the film blessed with an almost unbendable optimism, but he is in no way naive. He has a strong sense of realism and pride and, in many ways, represents Newman's moral conscience and ratio.

The world here is without glamour. It's all very raw and real - not necessarily a realistic setting, but with believable characters - and that makes the whole thing work. It's not formulaic, and never seems to go where you expect it. The film has a downbeat neon-lit dark photography by John Alcott. Depressing, but perfectly matching the mood. It's simple, straightforward, unpretentious, and s basically a portrait of human tragedy. Don't expect flashy car chases or fast action. There's plenty of violence, but it seems to be a way of life, rather than serve as sensationalism, but proves to be a all the more effective. Worth seeing.

Camera Obscura --- 9/10

This film was one of the best of its kind back in the day.Apparently produced by David Susskind ,some of you may recall him from his talk show on TV in the 70's.I really enjoyed this because the producers stayed clear of any standard cliches you usually find in police dramas. Also being from N.Y., I would readily attest that most of this is about accurate as far as the late 70's drug scene goes.As mayor Beame and his political hacks looked the other way ,and coruption flourished in every precinct in the city ,drug dealers became Druglords and then went on to become Kingpins . Certainly Pam Grier steals the show ,and Paul Newman is excellent as the weary beat cop in the ghetto. I liked Lou Grant as a cop ,but he should have had more to do in this.This film is also a kind of time capsule ,most of the South Bronx where this was shot looks completly different today , mostly renovated and redeveloped perhaps because of the attention this film recieved at the time.

I was a bit taken aback when reading through the external reviews and seeing notable critics like Roger Ebert generally panning this movie. Not that it's a high water mark of film making, but a stylish, gritty, well-constructed movie, certainly.

The one major distracting element is Paul Newman. His performance is not at fault by any standards, in fact he was very good, but in this dark look at inner city dwellers and how they're prisoners of the crime and poverty that surrounds them, one of Hollywood's most notable actors just sticks out like a sore thumb. Again, not through any misstep that Mr. Newman might have made, but just simply because he is who he is: Too big to fit into a movie about little people.

Regardless, the movie is highly recommended for anyone wanting a unique look at inner city blight, the people who live in this setting and the men and women who try to protect them. There is nothing quaint about this movie, it is real and rough.