1973 • Directed by Sidney Lumet
Screenplay by Waldo Salt and Norman Wexler
With Al Pacino and John Randolph
Released by Paramount Pictures
Adapted from a biography by Peter Maas, 'Serpico' had major impact on how cinema depicts members of law enforcement. Unlike older stories that portray cops in an heroic light, 'Serpico' examines misconduct within the police system that screenwriters had rarely, if ever, addressed. In prior decades, the integrity of police officers was 'off-limits' for American film and television, a silence that Frank Serpico helped to break.
Serpico, who is now a college lecturer and mentor, joined the New York City Police Department in 1959 as a patrolman. He eventually became a plainclothes officer and found himself isolated after refusing kickbacks that fellow cops took with itchy palms. Serpico hoped to address the problem by following NYPD's chain of command, but was eventually behind a tell-all New York Times article that forced Mayor Lindsay to organize the Knapp Commission in 1970.
Dino De Laurentiis stepped forward to produce the film adaptation of Maas's book, written by Waldo Salt with revisions by Norman Wexler. 'Serpico' was filmed while the Knapp Commission lingered in American headlines. Veteran director Sidney Lumet came on board as an eleventh-hour choice and the film's starring role went to Al Pacino, who was Oscar-nominated for his turn in 'The Godfather' and would receive a Golden Globe (for Best Actor in a Dramatic Film) as the police outcast.
Running two hours and ten minutes, 'Serpico' is a straight-up biopic that focuses on the cop's hardest trials. Pacino, who met and studied the real-life officer, portrays Serpico as an intense, driven figure who was equally open-minded and thickheaded. There was an intellectual, adventurous Serpico who enjoyed ballet with his girlfriend, studied the habits of animals, and looked for the good in all people; on the other hand, he was a self-loathing, arrogant fellow who was consumed by the no-win battles he vowed to fight. Serpico, at least on film, is admirable in his demands for police integrity but not very likable as a man in private. As the film progresses, we see him do little except walk a dog, complain about recent plights, and run two lovers into the ground.
Total heroism, however, is reserved for fiction. Serpico was an unusual cop with glaring strengths and weaknesses in his personality. Pacino succeeds in bringing out the many facets of Serpico and is helped by an able supporting cast. Since the film was tightly budgeted, most supporting roles were filled by lesser-known but capable actors: Tony winner John Randolph ('Earthquake,' 'You've Got Mail') plays Sidney Green, a police chief who respects Serpico from the beginning. Biff McGuire is adequate as Captain McClain, a counselor whom Serpico asks for help but is unreliable. Tony Roberts fills the role of Bob Blair, a hotshot detective with 'connections' to the Mayor's Office. Cornelia Sharpe (Leslie) and Barbara Eda-Young (Laurie) fare well as Serpico's love interests. Curiously, well-known actors F. Murray Abraham and Judd Hirsch have uncredited bits as police officers. 'Hill Street Blues' alumnus Ren� Enr�quez appears briefly as a Spanish literature instructor.
Sidney Lumet's direction is very good as usual, but the film has its weaknesses. The main problem rests in Waldo Salt and Norman Wexler's script (cut down from 240 pages!), which focuses on Serpico and his lonely position in the NYPD hierarchy. Most of the supporting characters - who dart in and out of the storyline - are only used to push matters along and lack true dimension. The far-reaching impact of Serpico is not examined in detail, either. For those who were not around to feel the Knapp Commission's impact in 1971, 'Serpico' appears told from the main character's self-imposed bubble.
Editing by Dede Allen and Richard Marks is also not to the high standard of Lumet's other films. Dialogue is occasionally out of sync with the actors and changes of angle are not quite correct. This was not entirely the technicians' fault, as a breakneck schedule forced Allen and Marks to edit the film while shooting. Lumet did not want a score (he did not use one, for instance, in 'Network'), but was forced to compromise with De Laurentiis; the few clips of music by Mikis Theodorakis (arranged by Bob James) are schlocky and an unwelcome distraction. A major strong point is Serpico's photography by Arthur Ornitz ('Death Wish,' 'An Unmarried Woman'), the late cinematographer who specialized in New York City venues.
Overall, 'Serpico' is a wall-to-wall Al Pacino vehicle that delivers. Perhaps a bit too long and technically imperfect, the breadth of Frank Serpico's legacy and the determined role-playing of Pacino make 'Serpico' a film of lasting importance. Paramount Pictures, the film's original distributor, has realized this and assembled a strong DVD of 'Serpico' for its Widescreen Collection. The 'Serpico' disc gives justice to Arthur Ornitz's photography, using a print with clean visuals and strong colors; grain is rare in backgrounds and there are no visible artifacts.
Sound is offered in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround, the restored mono track, and dubbed French. Subtitles are provided in English only. The mono track was used for reviewing this film and sounds of average quality; dialogue is sometimes muffled by background noise but Theodorakis's score comes through loud and clear. Sizeable extras include 'Serpico: from Real to Reel,' a ten-minute featurette on co-producer Martin Bregman and director Sidney Lumet's genesis of the material; 'Inside Serpico,' a 13-minute program on Serpico's filming; a gallery of images and advertising materials with commentary by Lumet on the film's music; and the theatrical trailer. Unfortunately, Pacino himself is not interviewed, while the extras and DVD case fail to mention his Golden Globe win and Oscar nomination for the role (?). Yet Paramount's disc is highly informative and pays more than enough homage to a famous story of the 1970s.
