Across 110th Street

Across 110th Street_720p(480P)

source: Across 110th Street

This incredible film was (mis)sold as a blaxploitation piece when it was released and, unfortunately, the label has stuck. (The US DVD is part of a black collection called "Soul Cinema"). Personally, I love blaxploitation movies for their brazen, unsubtle approach and mostly poor production values, but I can also understand why they do not interest a lot of people. Therein lies the tragedy of this great movie, as it bears very little resemblance to blaxploitation other than the fact that it has black people in it. It's pretty low budget, but it's a far cry from the clumsy and mindless tones of Bucktown, the gratuitous titillation of Coffy or the pounding social vengeance of Black Caesar. Even the better received titles like Shaft are unfair comparisons to this. This is no cheap thrill, this is very finely crafted and brilliantly acted piece of cinema. Across 110th Street is really one third cop character piece, one third Mafia crime/revenge thriller, and one third (black) social drama. This could've been a very clumsy affair but is pulled off extraordinarily well by virtue of having a fantastic script, restrained (almost detached) direction and brilliant performances by a perfectly cast group of very talented actors. I won't single them out, I will simply say that this film boasts one of the best ensemble casts I have ever seen. Not wanting to give too much away, the story involves three men from Harlem who steal $300,000 from the mob and spend the rest of the film evading both them and the police investigating the robbery. As if the engaging (if somewhat unoriginal by today's standards) story weren't enough, the real power of this movie is in its ability to evoke the bleak, grim and depressing world in which the story takes place. There is an anger and cynicism just beneath the surface of this movie which is held back so painfully that it will literally leave you numb for days. Every character here is ugly, hopeless, sad and resigned, save for the gangsters, but this is never overplayed. The angst never really gets out, and it stays with you long after the credits role. In my opinion, post-classical Hollywood was American cinema's finest hour. There's a reason it's known as Hollywood's second golden age. What, for me, gives it the edge is that film-makers were suddenly not afraid to present the underbelly of American life - the other side of the American Dream - through real characters that were far from the ideal, wholesome heroes we were used to. It's interesting that many of the comments here draw so much attention to the violence in this movie. While it is fairly strong, it's hardly abundant and it's never over the top or the least bit gratuitous. The best word to sum this film up, for me at least, is subtle. The subtlety and the almost indifferent way the film is presented allow it to really penetrate and get under the skin. There is a very precise and cynical sense of reality, which not only makes the film totally engrossing and believable but also makes it all the more moving as a consequence.

Criminally underrated 70's crime pic.....fully equal to Dirty Harry & The French Connection, but virtually unheard of at least here in the UK- I IMPLORE fans of hardboiled urban thrillers to check this out, you won't be disappointed! 3 black hoods rob $300,000 from the mafia, killing 2 cops and some mobsters in the process. The mob send in Nick D'salvio, a paranoid sadist married to the bosses daughter & desperate to prove himself worthy to his formidable father in law. The two senior policemen on the case are like chalk and cheese- Capt. Martelli is 55 & a corrupt, hardened, cynical veteran of the streets whose time is clearly drawing to a close. Wheras Lt. Pope is a young black detective- ambitious but fundamentally honest & by the book, and therefore appalled by Martelli's violent and sometimes illegal methods. What raises this film above the norm isn't the rather generic plot. The performances are uniformly excellent- but it's really the writing and directing that elevate this film to greatness.....Martelli and Pope (played by Anthony Quinn and Yaphet Kotto respectively) don't become "buddies" like Riggs and Mortaugh in Lethal Weapon, the simmering tension & mistrust between them remains- as it would in real life. The 3 robbers, whilst never glamourised (only one is shown as having any kind of real conscience, and their leader is dangerously & unpredictably violent), are far from cardboard cut out bad guys- they're all three dimensional characters, a realistic mix of good and bad, with understandable motives. The psychopathic D'Salvio on the other hand is a truly nasty piece of work with no redeeming features, but even he is intriguingly multi-layerd- particularly in his dealings with the positively Machiavellian boss of the Harlem crime syndicate Doc Johnson, in his own way the most ruthless and streetwise character in the movie.....On paper D'Salvio is the senior mobster, and so should have the upper hand, but Johnson expertly plays on his insecurities to gain the upper hand in a masterfully played scene. Perhaps the most surprising thing about the film is how well it has aged- made over 40 years ago it still holds up well today. Also the level of violence is very strong, even when compared to the many other tough thrillers of the time, but it's never gratuitous- like The French Connection, this is a film about the seamy side of life in New York's ghetto, and director Barry Shear captures the mood and texture of grim n gritty 70's Harlem in a way few have managed. A must see for those who like their thrillers edgy, realistic and uncompromising!

In Harlem, two Italian mobsters meet three black gangsters that work to the kingpin Doc Johnson (Richard Ward) to collect dirty money from their associates in an apartment building. Out of the blue, the smalltime thieves Jim Harris (Paul Benjamin) and Joe Logart (Ed Bernard) knock on the door disguised as police officers to steal US$ 300,000.00 from the Mafia. However, they startle when the suitcase with the money falls on the floor and Jim kills the five men with a machine gun. They flee to the runaway car driven by Henry J. Jackson (Antonio Fargas) and they kill two policemen. The idealist NYPD Lt. Pope (Yaphet Kotto) and the violent Capt. Mattelli (Anthony Quinn) investigate the case while the Italian Mafia and the black gangsters hunt the killers down. Will Jim Harris and his accomplices be found? "Across 110th Street" is a great action-crime-Blaxploitation film from the 70´s. The realistic plot would be politically incorrect in the present days but reflects life in those years. The performances and the art direction are magnificent, with tacky, dirty and ugly locations and costumes. My vote is seven. Title (Brazil): "A Máfia Nunca Perdoa" ("The Mafia Never Forgives")

I saw Across 110th St. many years ago and to this day it's one of my favorite crime flicks of the 70s, right up there with The Godfather, Serpico, and Dirty Harry. If you're gonna make a movie about the gritty, dangerous hardcore mafia underworld, you shouldn't sugar-coat it in any way. IMHO this is the best thing this movie has going for it: it's realism. There's no Hollywood-style heroism here, just human nature at its worst. Psychopathic Mafia hit-man, corrupt cop on the take, brutal violence, ruthless crime bosses, greedy crooks, all told without soft-core political correctness. Movies of this type really should show the mob society as it is, without coloration, that's how they make an impact on their audience. This one, I must say, does a pretty good job at that. Not perfect, mind you, I also thought Franciosa's character was a little over the top, but good. My rating: 10/10 Also if you don't like sadistic violence, don't see this one. See Law and Order

I caught this on BBC 1 one night many years ago . I forgot the title but could vividly remember a number of scenes especially a line of dialogue where two characters describe a third one having his genitals mutilated . This type of movie would be broadcast on television 30 years ago and no one would blink an eyelid but at the same time you can understand why it wouldn't be shown on network TV today . It as also a sign of the times back then that the TV broadcast had the F word overdubbed to something less offensive but the racial slurs against both black and whites remained intact . Perhaps the fact this film is consciously insensitive and hard hitting works against it ? This is a pity because it's not some " Blaxploitation " fare but more of a New Hollywood thriller at its best The story itself is no great shakes - a couple of black dudes rip off and kill a few members of the Mafia and the black underworld and also kill a couple of uniformed cops in the process and find if not the entire world against them then at least the law enforcers and law breakers of NYC wanting to cap their ass . It's the sort of film Tarantino has been inspired by but unlike Tarantino's work this movie is devoid of post modernism and crippling self indulgence and is a relatively tightly plotted screenplay where lots of nasty things happen to lots of nasty people . There's a subplot featuring character interaction between Anthony Quinn's nasty racist white cop and Yaphet Kotto's not very nasty by the books black cop that might have been clichéd but does seem fresh and realistic , probably down to the fact the performances and writing portraying a rather amoral relationship between the two men and the wider world . And this does feel like an exceptionally amoral film that we never see nowadays more is the pity

This time capsule frames the the end of an era that we can all look back to. One can also learn what it meant to be an oppressed black man, a junior mobster or a tired NYC detective in that late sixties era. Insight to the workings of the black Harlem underground of the day and the viciousness of the Italian Mafia by night. So believable, the writer had to have lived some part of this classic. Unlike any movie before,I rooted for every character depicted. Anthony Quinns determination and Yaphets silence both show the past and future of the entities being played out. The bathroom scene between the two cops was a highlight for me. This is not a blaxploitation movie it is a NYC movie. This movie is a treasure and I thank God it has not been remade.

Paul Benjamin, Ed Bernard, and Antonio Fargas disguised as policemen raid a mob numbers bank and rip it off to the tune of $300,000.00. But the getaway is pretty bloody. Five gangsters and two real policemen wind up dead. The film is a race against time because two parallel manhunts are at work for these perpetrators. The captain of the local police precinct Anthony Quinn is under pressure to bring in these cop killers. It's not clear whether Quinn's connection to the local black gangster crew who run the operation for the mafia is going to help or hinder his investigation. In the meantime the local Don has sent his son-in-law Anthony Franciosa to head his own manhunt for the robbers. Of course they have sources that the cops don't have. Of course the methods aren't too much different. Miranda warnings were a new thing at the time and Quinn is an old timer who really doesn't believe in them. The way Quinn and Franciosa interrogate doesn't leave too much room for difference, except that Quinn's subjects were still breathing after it was over. This film probably has more bad people in it than any other that came along until Goodfellas came out. Yaphett Kotto as a cop sent from headquarters to monitor the situation is probably the only decent one among the principal players. The best performances in the film are by Tony Franciosa who is never bad in anything and Richard Ward who may work for the Italian mob, but is by no means a lackey. He's determined to wind up a winner no matter what happens to Quinn and Franciosa. It's a gritty look at the seamy side of law enforcement and its also gangsters without the Godfather glamor.

Skirting at least some of the clichés of blaxploitation, ACROSS 110TH STREET is an entertaining mess. Anthony Quinn and Yaphet Kotto play NYC cops and unlikely partners trying to find out who stole some mafia loot and killed a couple of cops in the process. Anthony Franciosa is an inept low-level mafiosi also hunting for the culprits. Quinn and Kotto are actually pretty dull, but Paul Benedict gives an electrifying performance as the lead thief. He's well matched with Norma Donaldson as his sympathetic wife. Antonio Fargas also appears in a brief, and of course, flamboyant role. It's a ridiculous and violent time-capsule capturing the nearly bankrupt NYC of the early 1970s...and it's tough to beat that Bobby Womack music. Directed by Barry Shear, who came from television and promptly went back to television.