SERPICO

I'd been putting off seeing this film for getting on for fifty years, for no very good reason other than that I thought it might be a bit depressing, watching a young Al Pacino play the real-life cop, Frank Serpico, battling in vain against corruption in the 1970s NYPD.

But hey, it's Sidney Lumet directing Pacino, a couple of years before they got together again for the brilliant 'Dog Day Afternoon'.

The big surprise for me is that the first half of the film is quite light and entertaining - Frank has a playful side to his character, and has oodles of charm even if it is lost on most of his colleagues and superiors.

The trouble for Serpico is that those colleagues who are on the take (seemingly most of them) can't leave him be, when all he wants to be is a good, honest cop.  As a result Frank becomes increasingly concerned for his safety (rightly so, as it turns out) and resorts to whistle-blowing, first within the department, and then outside.

This takes a big toll on his mental health and on his relationship with his girlfriend, which is realistically portrayed.

It ends up with Frank being shot and fighting for his life, and then becoming something of a celebrity for a short while.  I give the film credit for not going for a feelgood ending, and the viewer is left feeling that Frank's sacrifices have been somewhat in vain, in that the guys at the top are not brought to account.

All the performances are great, and the film has a realistic gritty feel to it which I enjoyed.

However the score is quite execrable, described perfectly by one reviewer as "redundant and dumb", yet somehow it got nominated for awards.  It's by the guy who wrote the score for 'Zorba the Greek', a film I definitely intend never to watch.

RATING: ✓ If You've Nothing Better To Do