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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.

What an underrated flick. Great action.Great tension.The only thing (you could ask for) would have been Friedkin directing it. I know, I know. Same year as Exorcist. Still... One comment which was made referred to the plot being confusing which I slightly agree with. Friedkin might have cracked the whip on that part. I always thought you could do a lot of different things in a car wash. And Moon!!! Thank God for Richard Lynch. What an actor.And the driver. He should have acted more. Great menace.With those little glasses. Also underrated is Roy. He never got his due. He should have won for All That Jazz. FC II is great, but this is too overlooked. p.s. AVOID THE NEW EXORCIST. Wait for Schraeder DVD.

From the man who brought cinema-goers 1968 "Bullit" and 1971 "The French Connection", Philip D'Antoni goes on to produce, but also make his directorial debut with the realistic, tough-as-nails crime thriller "The Seven-Ups" starring an unwavering Roy Scheider as the leader of a secret squad of the New York police who got their name from the minimum sentence of their targeted gangsters. Things go pear shape when their own is killed in action and the men seek their own justice.

While this urban cop formula might be overworked, it's rather well-done for its type with exciting passages like the scorchingly intense high- speed car chase. It's masterful in its execution and camera positional work. D'Antoni resourcefully keeps a fast pace, where tension is sustained through good writing, elaborate plotting (where it does show its cards early), vivid performances and well-timed thrills and spills with smooth editing. Really it's quite minimal on the action leaning towards the investigative digging, but when it occurs it's explosive and raw. Just the way the 70s loved it. One thing that did catch my attention was Don Ellis' dangerously impulsive music score. Very unhinged, but it did suit the film's dark, relentless tone.

The story is very much character based and the performances are assured across the board. Victor Arnold, Jerry Leon and Ken Kercheval make-up the rest of "The Seven-ups". Tony Lo Bianco magnificently holds up alongside Scheider as his go-to-man for information. Then there's Larry Haines as one the head mobsters. However in the bad guy roles it was Bill Hickman and especially the striking Richard Lynch who stood out. Lynch was terrifically menacing. Also in a minor part is genre actor Joe Spinell.

Compelling, lean and mean 70's cop drama.

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.