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I first saw this in the mid '80s and thought: 'what a stylish thriller!' It seems to have been filmed in a low-grade film stock, which has given it a grainy/soft-focus look which also adds to it's realism. Elliot Gould, who stars as one of the hard-bitten cops also appears in another Peter Hyams opus, Capricorn One. Robert Blake who plays Gould's partner, later featured in his own TV detective series called Baretta.

There are some wonderful set-pieces in the movie, the best in my opinion involving our heroes chasing some bad dudes from a seedy hotel, and through a supermarket on the streets. It's classic Cat-and-Mouse fare, as the villains take a hostage while Gould 'n' Blake have them firmly in their gunsights. This moment is ingeniously realised by Hyams' use of a wide-angled lens. There are also brilliant car chases galore to marvel at.

Anyone who is a fan of this type of gritty cop thriller with a downbeat ending, would enjoy another good example: William Friedkin's 'To Live and Die in LA' (1985) which stars C.S.I.'s William Peterson.

Directed by Peter Hyams, Busting apparently inspired the television show Starsky & Hutch. It was released at a similar time as Freebie and the Bean which was commercially more successful but Busting is more tighter, coherent and cynical picture that still retains elements of its comedy.

Keneely (Elliott Gould) tall, laconic and chews gum all the time and Farrel (Robert Blake) shorter and tougher are two LA vice cops who spend most of their time arresting hookers and people in gay bars rather than than the big crime lords who they feel are being protected by their superior officers and cynical lawyers.

They decide to go all out to catch the local crime lord Rizzo (Allen Garfield) which annoys their superiors who prefer they go after the small fry.

The film has a comedic and anarchic tone but beneath the cynicism it also has a heart of two cops trying to do the right thing and not happy with just fitting up hookers and their clients.

There are thrills as well with well staged shootout sequences in a market and later in a hospital. The film is a softer and sarcastic edged version of The French Connection featuring elements of a buddy cop duo and a message that crime does pay.

I caught part of this 1973 flick one late night on TNT. I was intrigued because it was supposed to be Peter Hyams' first theatrical effort. So I went out and bought a copy on VHS. At first this film may not seem much. Just an updated version of the old police procedurals from the 1940s and 50s. But after a couple more viewings I was hooked. There's a certain indescribable quality to it (see Walter Hill's "The Driver" and you'll know what I mean). A hang-dog, left coast version of the French Connection. Very laid back, but deadly serious. The viewer feels the same frustrations the Gould-Blake teams feels in the up-hill struggle to rid their beat of society's scum. The duo risks life, limb, and personal and professional humiliation trying to nail the vile crime boss and galvanize indifferent peers and supervisors. Brisk dialogue, thoughtful direction, excellent photography by Earl Rath, sleazy LA locales and a fine cast make this forgotten film a winner. Give it a try!

Peter Hyams' debut movie is a forgotten movie jewel from 1973. It's a typical early seventies cop and action thriller about two police officers (Elliott Gould and Robert Blake) hunting a mafia boss and finding out that the villain is co-operating with police officials.

Blake and Gould (who is incredibly "groovy" looking) are giving fine performances in this dirty little picture. They are doing raids in whore houses and gay bars, they are beaten up by gangsters and often use their guns to get what they want. Their characters are not far away from those of Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider in "French Connection" which has clearly influenced the settings, tempo and plot of this movie.

Some high points of "Busting" next to the main actors are the funky, Lalo-Schifrin-style sound track and a big showdown between the cops and a bunch of gangsters in a shopping mall battered with people. You can alos find those certain hints of conspiracies and paranoia all over this movie that became benchmarks for later Peter Hyams films such as "Capricorn One", "Outland", or "Star Chamber". Watch this incredible seventies movie, you won't regret it!

Gee… doesn't the 70s have some cracking crime thrillers… some of these even fall in the cracks, which this one undeservedly does and in which case I would put it down as one of the best the decade had to offer. Writer / director Peter Hyams' debut feature "Busting" is an excellently pitched comedy thriller with outstanding performances by Elliott Gould and Robert Blake as two Los Angeles vice squad officers Michael Keneely and Patrick Farrel who rage a war against a well-respected crime kingpin Carl Rizzo (Allen Garfield), but also find themselves fighting corruption inside the force for their constant harassing of Rizzo. There they decide if it means doing things outside the book, well they'll do it to get their man.

The surefooted plot might seem dated and rather routine (frustrated cops battling criminals and the law, in which they feel like they are fighting a lost cause), but the innovative script is constantly witty / stinging in its observations (that especially goes for its downbeat, but ironic conclusion) and the chemistry between Gould and Blake simply ignites. The narrative seems to be strung together by sporadic plot threads, but there's a certain awkwardness to its cynical approach that just makes it so odd. The interchanges between the two cops and also with Garfield are bitingly dry, but enjoyably so. While there's a playful tongue-in-cheek style, it can be exhaustingly aggressive (you know the brutality featuring red paint) and edgy. Hyams skilfully stages the lean action with gritty, but frenetic authenticity as the bombastic score kicks in. Watch how the camera-work always instinctively moves around, like it has a mind of its own by following the action with numerous tracking shots. Just look at the relentlessly thrilling market store shootout / chase. Earl Rath does a hypnotic job behind the camera. Hyams keeps it snappy and makes great use of the grungy urban setting and seedy strips that really do bring the film to life. The cast are fantastic in their roles. Garfield reeks of confidence and the support features the likes of William Sylvester, Logan Ramsey, Michael Learner, Antonio Fargas, Corbelia Sharpe and the dominating Sid Haig as Rizzo's bouncer.

"Gotta stay alive man. Gotta stay alive."