Serpico (1973)

The true story about an honest New York cop who blew the whistle on rampant corruption in the force only to have his comrades turn against him.

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writers:

Peter Maas (book), Waldo Salt (screenplay),

Stars:

Al Pacino, John Randolph, Jack Kehoe

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 6 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Al Pacino	...	Frank Serpico
John Randolph	...	Chief Sidney Green
Jack Kehoe	...	Tom Keough
Biff McGuire	...	Captain McClain
Barbara Eda-Young	...	Laurie
Cornelia Sharpe	...	Leslie Lane
Tony Roberts	...	Bob Blair
John Medici	...	Pasquale
Allan Rich	...	D.A. Tauber
Norman Ornellas	...	Don Rubello
Edward Grover	...	Lombardo (as Ed Grover)
Albert Henderson	...	Peluce (as Al Henderson)
Hank Garrett	...	Malone
Damien Leake	...	Joey
Joseph Bova	...	Potts (as Joe Bova)

Storyline

Serpico is a cop in the early 1970s. Unlike all his colleagues, he refuses a share of the money that the cops routinely extort from local criminals. Nobody wants to work with Serpico, and he's in constant danger of being placed in life threatening positions by his "partners". Nothing seems to get done even when he goes to the highest of authorities. Despite the dangers he finds himself in, he still refuses to 'go with the flow', in the hope that one day, the truth will be known.

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Plot Keywords:

money | corruption | police | drugs | knapp commission | 

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Taglines:

Many of his fellow officers considered him the most dangerous man alive - An honest cop.

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Genres:

Biography | Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA Italy

Language:

English Italian Spanish

Release Date:

5 December 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

Serpiko

Filming Locations:

5-7 Minetta Street, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Artists Entertainment Complex, Produzioni De Laurentiis International Manufacturing Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

130 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Woodie King Jr. was originally cast as a hoodlum but broke his leg while filming a chase scene. He was replaced but returned to the set two months later to play Leslie's friend, Larry, in the party scene.

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Goofs

Serpico and Lombardo rapidly descend a shaky metal fire escape system without making a sound or alerting the lookout man, who only notices them when they fall to the pavement beside him.

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Quotes

Bob Blair: [to Frank] Who the fuck do you think you are, you son of a bitch? You think you have it bad just because those bastards won't play ball?

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Connections

Referenced in Barney Miller: Ambush (1975)

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Soundtracks

"E Lucevan le Stelle"
(uncredited)
from "Tosca"
Music by Giacomo Puccini
Performed by Giuseppe Di Stefano

User Reviews

He's still my hero!

Serpico managed to last a lot longer than I did as a cop...I made it 7 years but being a female officer in SC in the '80's was not a cakewalk either! I now teach criminal justice at the community college level and I have taught Ethics classes for 13 years; Frank Serpico is always a part of that course and the movie is always shown. While the movie is "old" it still holds up. My students always rave about it and some of them even read Peter Maas' book...without being made to! We finished the movie today. We begin discussion Friday and it will be lively, as always. This is well worth the watch/read and make no mistake that it "can't be like that now"; watch the news.