Hollywood Cop

My review was written in January 1988 after watching the film on Celebrity video cassette.

"Hollywood Cop" is an enjoyable B-picture, crudely made but suitable for the home video action market. Its roster of familiar character actors will generate some interest.

David Goss plays the title role, a handsome young cop assigned to undercover work. Susan Schoenhofer appeals to him for help when her son is kidnapped by the mob to put pressure on since her husband (Larry Lawrence) stiffed them for $6,000,000. With the aid of his partner Lincon Kilpatrick, Goss goes up against the baddies and blows them away.

Loaded with extraneous t&a footage, picture substitutes energy for sense in many scenes but is fun to watch. As fellow cops, Cameron Mitchell and Troy Donahue take a tongue-in-cheek approach to the proceeding, while lead Jim Mitchum is cast against type in a smallish role as a Mafia boss.

Is it just me, or is this heap of s..t so favorably reviewed, it isn't funny. One thing this (movie-very sarcastic) truly is. This (film) sorry, s..t is so bad, it makes Kill point look good. Kill Point did have class, but I don't know what this film has. This is another write the script as you go movie, honestly. This film features, over washing a dog, a stable of classy broads, plus Cameron Mitchell, a lieutenant, going off at our Mcgyver looking type hero cop, Turk, who earns the title. Great frizzy hairdo by the way. And for script continuity, what we've got are prolonged scenes, some almost unnecessary, cutting away from the meat of the story, that will provide some lengthy snores. Here's as example of write as you go. A woman who's little boy, had been kidnapped, and held for ransom, is walking this L.A street, forlorn, explains her situation to a stranger who points to the Hollywood cop, who's happening by. Dialogue not exact but words to this effect:

FRANTIC WOMAN

Someone's taken my boy, I don't know

what to do.

WOMAN STRANGER

May'be he can help. That's Joe Turk. He's

a cop.

FRANTIC WOMAN

(relieved)

Really.

Yeah, really. That's what to expect from this. Some hot looking classy gals, and ones shirtless in panties is the upside of this trash, if written at a minutes notice. Jim Mitchum who plays a bad guy/uptown pimp, what have you, actually does a fine job here, where I had previously seen him in Trackdown, his character in that, playing at the good end of the scale. Some scenes are so embarrassingly funny, especially in an action sequence, where we cut back and forth a few times to a bedroom scene, of drunken angry sex- our henchman wanted to do it on the floor. So, if you're the undemanding viewer, it's pretty much it's your call. If you're the one with regrets, like me, surely, you know what the hell I'm talking about. This is a film so pathetic, I'd feel solely embarrassed watching it, or moronic. Why not just leaves the broads in, and do away with this rest.

Amir Shervan has made two instant 80s trash classic - SAMURAI COP and this one. There is so much funny stuff in here. Like when Hollywood COP Turk confronts a husband holding a rapist hostage and says, "Look, I know the guy just f**ked your wife..." In addition, there are some scary looking stunts like when a guy falls off a roof onto a bail of hay and when another guy falls out of a car and almost gets run over by the tire. There is also one of the funniest dialog scenes ever when the father goes to rescue his son. He son, who is being held hostage, doesn't want to leave because dad didn't show up for Christmas. The father deftly explains that he left the kid and his mom all away by saying he had blood poisoning and is dying (in the scene previous to this he was caught cavorting with topless hussies). Classic!

Satisfying as a generic low budget actionsploitation flick from the time. Amir's direction is as stilted as always, most scenes consist of long shots with the actors a few feet away from the camera, bits of awkward acting, odd dubbing, somewhat disjointed editing and some rather silly writing. However, there are some fun action sequences, enjoyable performances and a rather amusing plot to keep you entertained. Its also kind of a sleazy film.

Not as off-beat or cheap as Samurai Cop but it has its weird moments. Not awful but very flawed and too long for its own good.

As far as schlocky low budget action thrillers go this one isn't all that bad. The acting and dialogue is what makes it so goofy, I mean you got Cameron Mitchell complaining about tums in one scene for christ sake. The other problem is the pacing, there's scenes where our hero and his partner are just screwing around that seem to go on forever, but, as a first time effort for Amir Shervan this isn't ineptly made like you would figure it to be, goofy and schlocky yes, bad no.