The defence The Prestige Tourist
“Form is the argument.”
Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.
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Serpico
Crime · Drama · 1973
New York cop Frank Serpico blows the whistle on the rampant corruption in the force only to have his comrades turn against him.
Movie details
Serpico
“Many of his fellow officers considered him the most dangerous man alive - an honest cop.”
1973 Crime · Drama 2h 9m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
7.5 / 10
Community rating
New York cop Frank Serpico blows the whistle on the rampant corruption in the force only to have his comrades turn against him.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over Serpico?
For the defence
The Prestige Tourist
“You like your greatness pre-approved.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
American Gangster
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Gotti
Crime · 1996
John Gotti, the head of a small New York mafia crew breaks a few of the old family rules. He rises to become the head of the Gambino family and the most well-known mafia boss in America. Life is good, but suspicion creeps in, and greed, rule-breaking and his high public profile all threaten to topple him.
The Place Beyond the Pines
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A motorcycle stunt rider considers committing a crime in order to provide for his wife and child, an act that puts him on a collision course with a cop-turned-politician.
Night Falls on Manhattan
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A newly elected District attorney finds himself in the middle of a police corruption investigation that may involve his father and his partner.
The Alto Knights
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Two of New York's most notorious organized crime bosses, Frank Costello and Vito Genovese, vie for control of the city's streets. Once the best of friends, petty jealousies and a series of betrayals place them on a deadly collision course that will reshape the Mafia (and America) forever.
Donnie Brasco
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An FBI undercover agent infiltrates the mob and identifies more with the mafia life at the expense of his regular one.
Cop Land
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Freddy Heflin is the sheriff of a place everyone calls “Cop Land” — a small and seemingly peaceful town populated by the big city police officers he’s long admired. Yet something ugly is taking place behind the town’s peaceful facade. And when Freddy uncovers a massive, deadly conspiracy among these local residents, he is forced to take action and make a dangerous choice between protecting his idols and upholding the law.
Dark Blue
Crime · 2002
Set during the Rodney King riots, a robbery homicide investigation triggers a series of events that will cause a corrupt LAPD officer to question his tactics.
Brooklyn's Finest
Crime · 2010
Enforcing the law within the notoriously rough Brownsville section of the city and especially within the Van Dyke housing projects is the NYPD's sixty-fifth precinct. Three police officers struggle with the sometimes fine line between right and wrong.
Magnum Force
Drama · 1973
"Dirty" Harry Callahan is a San Francisco Police Inspector on the trail of a group of rogue cops who have taken justice into their own hands. When shady characters are murdered one after another in grisly fashion, only Dirty Harry can stop them.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Sidney Lumet
Written by
Waldo Salt · Norman Wexler
Al Pacino
Officer Frank Serpico
John Randolph
Sidney Green
Jack Kehoe
Tom Keough
Biff McGuire
Captain McClain
Barbara Eda-Young
Laurie
Cornelia Sharpe
Leslie Lane
Tony Roberts
Bob Blair
Court is in session
Put Serpico on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist
“Technique in search of a pulse.”
Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.