The Detective (1968)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Gordon Douglas

Writers:

Abby Mann (screenplay)
Roderick Thorp (novel)

Release Date:

28 May 1968 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Plot:

Police detective Joe Leland investigates the murder of a homosexual man. While investigating, he discovers...

Plot Keywords:

Homosexual | Detective | Beautiful Woman | Gay Bar | Neo Noir

Cast

Frank Sinatra	...	Det. Sgt. Joe Leland
Lee Remick	...	Karen Wagner Leland
Ralph Meeker	...	Curran
Jack Klugman	...	Dave Schoenstein
Horace McMahon	...	Capt. Tom Farrell
Lloyd Bochner	...	Dr. Wendell Roberts
William Windom	...	Colin MacIver
Tony Musante	...	Felix Tesla
Al Freeman Jr.	...	Robbie Loughlin
Robert Duvall	...	Nestor
Pat Henry	...	Mercidis
Patrick McVey	...	Police Officer Mike Tanner
Dixie Marquis	...	Carol Linjack
Sugar Ray Robinson	...	Kelly
Renée Taylor	...	Rachael Schoenstein

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Singapore:PG | West Germany:18 (f) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:Approved

Company:

Arcola Pictures

Trivia:

'Frank Sinatra (I)' plays Detective Joe Leland from the novel (The Detective) by Roderick Thorp. Thorp wrote a sequel (Nothing Lasts Forever) where Leland is trapped in a Claxxon Oil Corporation skyscraper after it's taken by German terrorists and must rescue his daughter and grandchildren. Twenty years later the novel was filmed with some changes: the daughter became his wife, Claxxon became the Nakatomi Corporation and Joe Leland's name was changed to John McClane. The film was released under the title Die Hard (1988).

Goofs:

Continuity: When Joe leaves his apartment to go to Dave's apartment he leaves his hat behind. But when he leaves Dave's apartment he has his hat.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast: Frank Sinatra (1977) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Laura

corrupt cops

An honest cop gets caught up in a web of corruption as he investigates the murder of a prominent gay socialite. Frank Sinatra plays Detective Joe Leland, a beacon of decency and stability in his own unhinged world. His wife (Lee Remick) is practically a nymphomaniac, unable to control her sexual appetite, while his fellow detectives (Ralph Meeker and Robert Duvall) are involved in a widespread real estate corruption scandal known as Rainbow. The investigation of the murder takes place after the prime suspect is wrongly executed for the crime, and leads into the underground New York homosexual world of the late 60's, with some fascinating scenes shot at one of the bars, with a few faces that have been seen in other films, and a surreal atmosphere. Some have called this gay-bashing, though it seems more to be a portrayal of the secretive and closeted world of that time. In any event, the threat of being outed is an essential part of the story, and that element is quite dramatic and well done, with William Windom quite believable as the closeted and married gay man at the center of Rainbow. A tough movie of a detective caught up in a weird world of public corruption and personal crisis, catch it if you can.