Serpico
Composite Score: 85.93
Starring: Al Pacino, John Randolph, Jack Kehoe, Biff McGuire, Barbara Eda-Young, Cornelia Sharp, Tony Roberts, and Allan Rich
Director: Sidney Lumet
Writers: Waldo Salt and Norman Wexler
Genres: Biography, Crime, Drama, Thriller
MPAA Rating: R
Box Office: $29.86 million worldwide
Why should you Watch This Film?
Serpico is the film adaptation of the book of the same name by Peter Maas about the real-life career of NYPD officer and eventual whistleblower Frank Serpico. It stars Al Pacino as the titular straight cop, giving one of his most memorable performances as the harried loner in street clothes who refuses to accept the rampant corruption in the police department. The way the film explores the corruption of the NYPD, and police forces in general, remains as relevant today as it was in 1973. It also earned Academy Award nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Lead Actor for Pacino. It remains one of the most iconic cop crime films of all time.
Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?
If you can’t buy in to Pacino and his performance as Frank Serpico, you’re going to absolutely hate Serpico. This is a film that requires the audience to be fully invested in its protagonist, and it mostly achieves that through some establishing sequences in the film’s extended first act. If those scenes win you over, there’s nothing to worry about; you’ll like the film. If, however, you find yourself baffled by the seeming quirkiness of this supposedly hard-nosed, clean police officer, walking around dressed like a late-era hippie, stumbling from one event to the next, I don’t know that you’ll ever get back on board with the rest of the film. Again, it’s an iconic and talented performance, but between Pacino’s characterization and Lumet’s and the writing team’s creative choices, there might not be enough going on for everyone to latch onto.
So wait, why should you Watch This Film?
On the flip side, it is Pacino that carries Serpico. The story is interesting enough, if a bit disappointing when you consider the continued rampant corruption and gang-like tactics still present in the NYPD and most other American police forces. Without a performance like the one Pacino gives here, you probably end up with just another middling copaganda film. As it stands, Al Pacino’s interpretation of Serpico is one of the best performances of his career. He had the unfortunate luck to be in one of the most stacked Best Actor races in Oscars history (Lemmon in Save the Tiger, Brando in Last Tango in Paris, Nicholson in The Last Detail, Redford in The Sting, and him) or else I think he could have come away with the gold. He gives audiences a character that they don’t want to look away from for fear of missing his next antic or statement, and it allows the film to say what it has to say more easily because of it.
Thanks to Pacino’s phenomenal leading performance, Serpico is elevated above the plethora of police corruption films to a memorable place in film history, worthy of its spot alongside the greats. Some of the film’s decisions might not resonate quite as easily with some audiences as others, but those who get drawn in will find themselves unable to shake the character that Al Pacino brings to life on the screen. This film is currently available to stream via Paramount+ or Showtime if you’d like to check it out.
