Serpico is a 1973 neo-noir crime drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and produced by Martin Bregman. The screenplay was written by Waldo Salt and Norman Wexler and is based on an adaption of Peter Maas’s biography of NYPD officer Frank Serpico, who went undercover to expose the corruption within the police force. The film stars Al Pacino, John Randolph, Jack Kehoe, Biff McGuire, Barbara Eda-Young, Cornelia Sharpe, Tony Roberts, John Medici and Allan Rich.
The storyline follows Frank Serpico, a young and inexperienced cop who starts out on patrol. Later, he starts to work as an undercover cop, busting all sorts of criminals, but mostly drug dealers and pushers. Since Serpico is a young man living in the 1960s and early 1970s, he lives as one. His image, based on how others look on him, shows him as just a ‘hippie’ and the criminals he busts have no idea he is really an undercover officer. Everything is working out well, except he learns that his colleagues are dirty, sharing money received from the extortion of criminals. Serpico refuses to accept money, as the other officers do. He feels this isn’t right, and wants to expose the situation. Who he thought were his friends now turn into his enemies when Serpico takes the stand on a grand jury investigation. He continues to work undercover, and his life is placed into jeopardy at the hands of his colleagues. In a 1971 drug bust, Serpico is betrayed and shot, after recovering with minor injuries he testifies to the Knapp Commission about police corruption.
Principle photography was completed in New York City and utilised 104 different locations in four of the five boroughs of the city (all except Staten Island). An apartment located at 5-7 Minetta Street in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village was used as Frank Serpico’s residence, although he lived on Perry Street during the events depicted in the film.
When Serpico was released it received positive reviews from the critics and was widely acclaimed. On Rotten Tomatoes it currently holds a rating of 90% with the general consensus being, “An engrossing, immediate depiction of early ’70s New York, Serpico is elevated by Al Pacino’s ferocious performance.”.
Commercially, Serpico was a box office success. Produced with an estimated production budget of $3 million, in its opening week it took $123,000 but was only shown on two screens in New York City. It went on to gross $29.8 million at the US box office which made it the 12th highest-grossing film of 1973.
The soundtrack which was composed by Mikis Theodorakis, was nominated for both the Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media and the BAFTA Award for Best Film Music. Director Sidney Lumet, was nominated for both the BAFTA Award for Best Direction and the Directors Guild of America and the film was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama. Al Pacino recieved an Academy Awards nomination for Best Actor, BAFTA nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role and won his first Golden Globe award for Best Actor.
Film Details
Title
Serpico
Year of Film
1973
Director
Sidney Lumet
Starring
Al Pacino, John Randolph, Jack Kehoe, Biff McGuire, Barbara Eda-Young, Cornelia Sharpe, Tony Roberts, John Medici, Allan Rich
Origin of Film
USA | Italy
Genre(s) of Film
Biography | Crime | Drama | Thriller
Box Office
Budget: $3,000,000 (Estimated)
Opening Weekend: $123,000
Gross: $29,800,000 (USA)
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