Serpico

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Biography

Serpico is a 1973 American crime film directed by Sidney Lumet . It is based on the true story of New York City police officer|policeman Frank Serpico , who went undercover to expose the corruption of his fellow officers, after being pushed to the brink at first by their distrust and later by the threats and intimidation they leveled against him. It stars Al Pacino , John Randolph (actor)|John Randolph and Tony Roberts (actor)|Tony Roberts .

Brief Plot

Based on the non-fiction book by Peter Maas , the film covers twelve and a half years (from September 11, 1959 to June 15, 1972) in the life of Frank Serpico , a NYPD officer who wants to do the best he can as a policeman. Working as a uniformed patrolman, Serpico succeeds in every assignment. He moves on to plainclothes assignments, where he slowly discovers a hidden world of illicit activities among his own colleagues. After witnessing cops doing drugs, committing violence, taking paybacks and other forms of police corruption , Serpico decides to expose what he's seen, but he is harassed and threatened. The struggle leads to infighting within the police force, problems in his personal relationships, and life-threatening situations. Finally, after being shot in the face during a drug bust on February 3, 1971, he testifies before the Knapp Commission , which was a government inquiry into police corruption between 1970 and 1972.

Cast

Actor !! Role
Al Pacino
John Randolph
Jack Kehoe
Biff McGuire
Barbara Eda-Young
Cornelia Sharpe
Tony Roberts
John Medici
Allan Rich
Norman Ornellas
Edward Grover
Albert Henderson
Hank Garrett
Damien Leake
Joseph Bova
Gene Gross
John Stewart
Woodie King Jr.
James Tolkan
Ed Crowley
Bernard Barrow
Sal Carollo
Mildred Clinton
Nathan George
Gus Fleming
Richard Foronjy
Alan North
Lewis J. Stadlen
John McQuade
Ted Beniades
John Lehne
M. Emmet Walsh
George Ede
Charles White
F. Murray Abraham
Don Billett
Raleigh Bond
John Brandon
James Bulleit
Roy Cheverie
Sam Coppola
Marjorie Eliot
René Enríquez
Conard Fowkes
Frank Gio
Trent Gough
Paul E. Guskin
Judd Hirsch
Bianca Hunter
Richard Kuss
Tony Lo Bianco
George Loros

Production

Prior to any work on the movie, producer Martin Bregman had lunch with biographical book author Peter Maas to discuss a film adaptation. Waldo Salt , a screenwriter, began to write the script which director Sidney Lumet deemed to be too long. Another screenwriter, Norman Wexler , did the structural work followed by play lines.

Director John G. Avildsen was originally slated to direct the movie, but was removed from production due to differences with producer Bregman. Lumet took the helm as director just before filming.
The real-life Frank Serpico wished to be present during the filming of the movie based on his life. Initially he was permitted to stay, but was eventually dismissed from the filming, as director Lumet was worried that his presence would make the actors (particularly lead actor Al Pacino) self-conscious.

The story was filmed in the streets of New York City. A total of 105 different locations in four of the five boroughs of the city were used. No filming took place in Staten Island . An apartment at 5-7 Minetta Street in Manhattan's Greenwich Village was used as Serpico's residence, though according to the Peter Maas book he actually lived on Perry Street during the events depicted in the film. Lewisohn Stadium , which was closed at the time of filming, was used for one scene.

As the storyline needed to show the progression of Frank Serpico 's beard and hair length, individual scenes were filmed in reverse order, with actor Al Pacino 's hair being trimmed for each scene set earlier in the film's timeline.

Woodie King Jr. , originally cast as a hoodlum, was replaced after suffering a broken leg while filming a chase scene for this movie. He returned to the set two months later to play Leslie's friend Larry in the party scene.

Playwright Sidney Kingsley loaned his apartment to Sidney Lumet for use to film the party scene. In 1935, Kingsley hired an 11-year-old Lumet to appear on Broadway in his play, "Dead End", and they had remained friends since then.

Awards

The original score was composed by Mikis Theodorakis , nominated for both the Grammy Award for Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media|Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture and the BAFTA Award|BAFTA award for BAFTA Award for Best Film Music|Best Film Music . Its Greek name is Dromoi Palioi . Sidney Lumet 's direction was recognized by both the BAFTA Award for Best Direction|BAFTAs and the Directors Guild of America Award|Directors Guild of America . The film itself was nominated for the Golden Globe Award|Golden Globe award for Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Drama|Best Motion Picture - Drama .

The film also received Academy Awards nominations for Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor in a Leading Role (Al Pacino) and Academy Award for Writing Adapted Screenplay|Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium . The Writers Guild of America|Writers Guild nominated the script for Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Drama Adapted from Another Medium .

Pacino won his first Golden Globe award for Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama|Best Actor in 1974 for his performance in the film. He also received a BAFTA nomination for BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role|Best Actor .

Box office

Serpico was a major commercial success, given its tight budget of only $1 million. It grossed $29.8 million at the domestic box office, making it the 1973 in film|12th highest-grossing film of 1973 .

Legacy

Serpico is hailed as a classic. Pacino's performance has come to be considered as one of his best. His role as Frank Serpico is ranked at #40 on the American Film Institute 's '' AFI's 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains|100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains '' list. The film is also ranked at #84 on the AFI's '' AFI's 100 Years... 100 Cheers|100 Years... 100 Cheers '', a list of America's Most Inspiring Movies.

There was a 1976 television series of Serpico (TV series)|Serpico , starring David Birney , who also played the role in a TV movie made in the same year, called Serpico: The Deadly Game .

A number of comedy B-movies were filmed in Italy in the 1970s, starring Tomás Milián in the role of an undercover policeman from Rome, who played a Serpico-like character.

In the Season 3 episode "Bums: Making a Mess All Over the City" of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, the character Charlie attempts to mimic Pacino's performance as Serpico to foil the antics of Frank and Dennis who had become crooked, albeit fake, cops.

Home video releases

Serpico was released on VHS and is available on Region 1 DVD since 2002. It was released on Blu-ray for the first time in France .

Copyright Citations

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