I've been hearing about this movie for years. A couple days ago I spent the three dollars on Amazon and watched it. I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.
The first thing I noticed was that this was not a movie about pretty people living the glamorous life in Los Angeles. Our two protagonists do not live well. Hickey (Bill Cosby) evidently owns two suits. Boggs (Robert Culp) is only seen in the same blue suit. Their vehicles are wrecks - on their last legs. Both men are weary and just grimy. There is even one shot in which we can see the sweat stains on Bogg's shirt.It's apparent that if the movie came with smell Hickey and Boggs would need showers.
One also gets the definite impression that the movie was filmed when it was hot in L.A. and there was no air conditioning available. Windows are open to catch what breeze there is and the air looks like you could cut it with a knife. There is absolutely no effort to make Southern California or our heroes look clean and neat. Wilted is the word that comes to mind.
And they aren't they only ones .The police officers and much of the general public look the same way.
Considering that in the early seventies Southern California was still considered to be the land of milk and honey to many Americans the decision to show the wormy underbelly of the state was daring.
Our heroes are not slick, perfect men. Neither are in very good shape. At one point Boggs breaks into a run, but soon gives it up. They aren't very good shots with their revolvers (a refreshing change of pace actually) and they more or less stumble onto many of the leads in the course of their investigation.
When the story ends they haven't accomplished anything except to kill the three mob soldiers who dog them throughout the movie. They save nobody, the mob remains untouched, and they might very well be looking at time in prison. At best they'll probably lose their private investigator licenses.
It's been said before, but this movie would never get made today. At least not as a mainstream movie. There is no satisfying conclusion. The villains continue to prosper with only a few low level "torpedos" and a middle level manager dead. The female ,who at first one thinks might need to be helped by our intrepid P.I.'s, soon turns out to be as bad as everyone else.
Jaded and cynical, but I liked this movie. It was smartly written and had a bite to it that one doesn't find anymore. In 2011 movie characters are perfect. Even the villains are perfect. In 1972 there was still room for the ordinary, sloppy, imperfect people.
The first thing I noticed was that this was not a movie about pretty people living the glamorous life in Los Angeles. Our two protagonists do not live well. Hickey (Bill Cosby) evidently owns two suits. Boggs (Robert Culp) is only seen in the same blue suit. Their vehicles are wrecks - on their last legs. Both men are weary and just grimy. There is even one shot in which we can see the sweat stains on Bogg's shirt.It's apparent that if the movie came with smell Hickey and Boggs would need showers.
One also gets the definite impression that the movie was filmed when it was hot in L.A. and there was no air conditioning available. Windows are open to catch what breeze there is and the air looks like you could cut it with a knife. There is absolutely no effort to make Southern California or our heroes look clean and neat. Wilted is the word that comes to mind.
And they aren't they only ones .The police officers and much of the general public look the same way.
Considering that in the early seventies Southern California was still considered to be the land of milk and honey to many Americans the decision to show the wormy underbelly of the state was daring.
Our heroes are not slick, perfect men. Neither are in very good shape. At one point Boggs breaks into a run, but soon gives it up. They aren't very good shots with their revolvers (a refreshing change of pace actually) and they more or less stumble onto many of the leads in the course of their investigation.
When the story ends they haven't accomplished anything except to kill the three mob soldiers who dog them throughout the movie. They save nobody, the mob remains untouched, and they might very well be looking at time in prison. At best they'll probably lose their private investigator licenses.
It's been said before, but this movie would never get made today. At least not as a mainstream movie. There is no satisfying conclusion. The villains continue to prosper with only a few low level "torpedos" and a middle level manager dead. The female ,who at first one thinks might need to be helped by our intrepid P.I.'s, soon turns out to be as bad as everyone else.
Jaded and cynical, but I liked this movie. It was smartly written and had a bite to it that one doesn't find anymore. In 2011 movie characters are perfect. Even the villains are perfect. In 1972 there was still room for the ordinary, sloppy, imperfect people.