People outside New York City might not immediately know the name of
Frank Serpico. Take heed then - the Knapp Commission, Jay Kriegel,
Patrick Murphy, police corruption in every shape and form. Ring a
bell? Make a Connection, French, Italian, or otherwise? It should,
for not only is Serpico the perfect cinematic cop - there will be a
film, watch for it - but he is shot in the face (blood everywhere),
wears hippie beads, drives a BMW sports coupe (we keep wondering
where the money came from - this is an expensive town), reads
Walden and Les Fleurs du Mal, listens to opera, plays the guitar,
screws handsome chicks (models, stewardesses, any color, all
colors), lives obtrusively in the Village (his Perry Street
neighbors call him "Paco" - that's Spanish for Frank and also
you're OK), has a tremendously big dog named Alfie who is never
seen (here) shitting in the streets, is a crack shot (he is
frequently at the range, practicing), knows karate (the
don't-fuck-with-me sport - unrefined but effective), has testified
against "New York's Finest," never ceasing "to be amazed at the
idea that he was a 'rat,' a fink, an informer," and is
incorruptible. Should make quite a flick. There's also a motorcycle
chase (at one point he owns a Honda 350 - we still wonder where the
money came from - unexplained in this account) which very closely
follows that other Connection (crash-crash, bang-bang) but also
involves a broad (who inexplicably waits out the caper - is Frank
really that good??) and furthermore there's plenty of tell-tale
about the malfeasance conduct of the officers with whom he worked,
when he wasn't on his own, playing Mr. Chameleon on the "Pussy
Posse" (hustling whores) or busting other evil criminal activities
around town. Constantly Frank is tempted by the take - ubiquitous
fuzz, crooks, and assorted bunkos attempt to cajole him into
corruption, but Serpico stands alone, an honest cop shilling rotten
apples. Eventually he spilled the beans, to the higher-ups, all the
way to the Commissioner and beyond (Leary resigned, Walsh resigned,
Lindsay quailed, Serpico's colleagues tried to kill him), a
grotesque regurgitation of the ugly facts of police lawlessness.
Serpico is an account of a man - a good and romantic man - who
outlived everything from a bullet in the head to the "psycho cop"
slander (Leary) and is still around for Maas to tell about it. An
achievement. Goddamit, an achievement. (Kirkus Reviews)
The novelisation of a film set in the 1970s, which tells of how
Patrolman Frank Serpico spent five lonely years, despite threats
from his fellow officers, fighting a fruitless battle against
police corruption, until finally, in despair and frustration, he
decided to take the final step. Reissued for the BLOOMSBURY FILM
CLASSICS series.
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