Diagonaldi Very well executed

Nessieldwi Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

keachs I remember watching this many years ago, probably on TV, soon after it came out. It's always been on my mind and I watched it again over the last two evenings. I am just in awe of the powerful story, great acting and the gritty setting of this amazing film. To this day, I cannot believe Sidney Lumet never won an Oscar for best director for all the other great films of his: Twelve Angry Men, Serpico, Network, Dog Day Afternoon, and this masterpiece. With no special effects, no big name actors, no sex, Mr. Lumet has me glued to the screen for nearly three hours. I agree with the other reviewer that this is in the class of the great ones like the Godfather, On the Waterfront, Raging Bull, along with the French Connection, and Serpico. It's a shame that only a minuscule percentage of the IMDb population even has heard or seen films like these from this era, where films were truly an art form, rather than the commercial vehicle that they have become today.

j3inpenn (Warning, Spoilers within) I haven't seen a movie about cops before or since this was made that is as great as this. This is probably Treat Williams best role. The bond that the policeman have in this movie is amazing. It is painful to watch some of the things happen, that happen. The other performances are great too. The late Jerry Orbach is great, as well as Carmine Caridi (an underrated actor), who plays a crooked detective. I found it to be an exciting and very tense and very sad film, as it showed all of the different characters. Between the cops and the prosecutors and the mobsters and the bail bondsmen and and the judges, drug dealers and the junkies, nobody seemed to be relaxed. Everybody is on edge, which makes them scary and dangerous to be around. Considering that the song "Love will keep us together", by Captain and Tennelle, is on the soundtrack was interesting to me. If you watch the film you will see what I mean. This film definitely needs to be talked about in the future when the late Sidney Lumet's career is discussed. He did a great job directing it.

alienworlds This film made a complete mockery of New Yorks finest, depicting them as greasy -see a word I can't use here-maybe with justification, I wonder. I can't even tell if that was the film makers intention. The dialogue is probably realistic at least where the gangster types in the film are concerned, and maybe for that reason alone it is worth a look. I know that the lead cop character comes off like a shake and bake job ready for a rubber room about half a dozen times in the movie, which is a far cry from the same type of character in the film Serpico. Tough is lacking in this portrayal of a cop on the way to juggling candy canes. Long also, at almost two and one half hours. Maybe inspired by the film The Godfather, nowhere near as well done as that film. Maybe I am being too harsh, but I wasn't all that impressed with this movie.

haildevilman Lumet never made a bad film.I'm from the city (Philadelphia) so I can relate to the atmosphere here. And the story of a corrupt cop trying to do well without hurting his friends is a goldmine of possibilities.Treat's gamut of emotions, while seeming a tad OTT, were nothing but enhancement to his scenes. And the script itself was Oscar worthy.The load of supporting characters was great as well. Every one of them was a scene-stealer in their own right.The brotherhood of cops in just about any city probably goes though similar trips. The internal hell they go through was evident here. And the attorneys who claim to be their friends while secretly going their own way was a wake-up call as well.Best scene had said attorneys deciding whether to prosecute. That's when you saw who his real friends were.This is a cop drama with brilliant performances all around. Like most of Sid's films. Unlike most, this is lost in the shuffle. Time for a rediscovery.