The Public Eye (1992)

Director:

Howard Franklin

Writer (WGA):

Howard Franklin (written by)

Release Date:

16 October 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

Murder. Scandal. Crime. No matter what he was shooting, "The Great Bernzini" never took sides he only took pictures... Except once.

Plot:

Story of a 1940s photographer who specializes in crime and in not getting involved... until this time.

Plot Keywords:

Photographer | Mob | News Photographer | 1940s | New York City

Cast

Joe Pesci	...	Leon Bernstein
Richard Riehle	...	Officer O'Brien
Bryan Travis Smith	...	Young Cop
Max Brooks	...	Teen at Thompson Street
Richard Schiff	...	Thompson Street Photographer
Laura Cerón	...	Puerto Rican Woman
Chuck Gillespie	...	Cop at Puerto Rican Tenement
Christian Stolte	...	Ambulance Attendant (as Christian Stolti)
Jack Denbo	...	Photo Editor
Ellen McElduff	...	Lonely Woman at Drugstore
Marge Kotlisky	...	Rineman's Receptionist
Timothy Hendrickson	...	Richard Rineman
Del Close	...	H.R. Rineman
Henry Bolzon	...	Cafe Society Photographer
Jared Harris	...	Danny the Doorman

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Germany:12 | USA:R (MPAA #31925) | France:U | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

The character of Bernzy was inspired by real-life photographer Arthur 'Weegee' Fellig, and some of Bernzy's photos are in fact Fellig's.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Burnsey's 35mm camera is either an Exakta V or VX. Those models were introduced in 1950 and 1951, respectively, and would not have been available during the 1940's.

Quotes:

Leon (Bernzy) Bernstein: Everybody loves to have their picture took. Everybody.

Movie Connections:

References Don't Turn 'em Loose (1936)

Soundtrack:

You Can't Say No to a Soldier

I really like this film a lot.

I first saw The Public Eye about ten years ago knowing nothing about it in advance. This movie has really stayed with me over the years. It's very rich in atmosphere and I really bought into the characters. The whole cast was strong and the writing was very good. I read one review that complained that the romance wasn't believable. On the surface that might be understandable but the quality of the acting and the writing completely erased the issue for me. The 1940's setting was portrayed very effectively and the music added so much to the story. The scene with Kay Levitz going through Bernzini's photo album was very moving and captured the whole story in a nutshell for me. I strongly recommend this forgotten gem.