Day #53 - Serpico

IMDB Link

Chris and I first heard of Serpico while watching an episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - Charlie plays Pacino's character and wears a poncho, yelling at other cops that they are all corrupt. It's fantastic. So Chris hijacked my Netflix queue and there ya go - Serpico. We actually knew nothing about it other than Pacino was in it and it had to do with corrupt cops haha :) Serpico was made in 1973 and was directed by Sidney Lumet. This is my second Lumet film after 12 Angry Men and I actually think this is the first time Pacino has appeared - ah!

Al Pacino plays Frank Serpico, a New York cop who prefers working undercover in street clothes - he's a bit strange, and after the other cops find out he is unwilling to accept money from criminals like they do, they turn against him. An honest cop like Serpico makes them all look bad, and Frank grows increasingly unhappy with his lack of advancement. In the end, Frank turns to an outside agency to investigate the corruption in the force - a big no no - a cop turning against cops. Though not an inspiring film per se, I did find Serpico to be a great symbol of one man standing up for the right thing in an extremely difficult situation. At the end of the movie, Frank ends up getting shot in the face - he survives but retires from the force and the investigation contines on.

I liked this movie a LOT more than I thought I was going to - older cop movies have a certain grittiness to them that I don't always care for but this I didn't mind. Pacino was AMAZING as Serpico and honestly I think his costume designer should have won an Oscar - his outfits were hysterical. Always trying to blend in, he has an interesting array of prints and patterns, a bit of hippy style and some rather ridiculous hats. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a good Pacino performance and/or a great cop movie.

Al Pacino won nominated for a Best Actor Oscar but lost to Jack Lemmon in Save The Tiger. I love watching "early" Pacino because it just reminds me how AMAZING of an actor he truly is.