BY LEE PFEIFFER
The decline and decay of American urban centers in the 1960s- along with the inevitable soaring crime rates- inspired Hollywood studios to reflect the general mood of society. It was clearly a tumultuous period, perhaps the most divisive era in American history since the Civil War a hundred years before. Race riots, Vietnam War protests, assassinations of high profile figures and soaring poverty rates combined to provide a perfect storm of social unrest. Always a barometer of where society was at at any particular point in time, the major studio releases begat a tidal wave of urban crime movies. Many of these centered on a single "lone wolf" protagonist...the "dirty cop", if you will, who generally had disdain for following constitutional rights in his quest to fight crime, often within the very police department he worked for. From the late 1960s through the 1970s, we saw such memorable cops as "Popeye" Doyle, "Dirty Harry" Callahan, Frank Bullitt and Virgil Tibbs taking on crime kingpins as well as top brass. The actions of these cops would be found to abhorrent today but at the time, the "shoot first, ask questions later" approach clearly had the backing of an American population that was losing faith in their criminal justice system. Sidney Lumet's 1973 film "Serpico" was perhaps the most compelling look at this problem, as it depicted a real life New York City police officer who dared to take on corruption in the highest levels of his own department and discovered that payoffs and back room deals between cops and crooks were systemic. By the mid-1970s, even John Wayne, the most stalwart symbol of political conservatism, had gone rogue by playing "stick-it-to-the-brass" detectives in "McQ" and "Brannigan". The explosion of urban crime dramas provided a great many opportunities for black actors. Sidney Poitier paved the way with his landmark performance in the 1967 film "In the Heat of the Night" and then revived the leading man from that film, Virgil Tibbs, in two sequels. The 1971 release of director Gordon Parks' "Shaft", portraying a slick, cynical black private eye, was a surprise success with mainstream audiences and led to the overnight tidal wave of so-called blaxploitation films, which were, with few exceptions, crudely made productions that merited "guilty pleasure" status with viewers. One of the many benefits of this trend was the emergence of so many fine African-American actors who had been performing under the radar in terms of name recognition.
"Across 110th Street", released in 1972, is not a blaxploitation film but it is a hybrid between that genre and the more upscale big studio crime flicks of the era. It boasts an intelligent script by Luther Davis, based on the source novel by Walter Ferris. The film takes place during the period when Harlem was generally depicted on screen as an urban wasteland, characterized by burned out buildings, back lots strewn with garbage and a generation of young black man with no hopes or prospects and, thus, falling prey to the lure of the criminal life. The movie opens with a back room meeting between members of an odd alliance: Mafia guys getting together with their counterparts in the Harlem mob to split up weekly proceeds from shakedowns and other ill-gotten gains. Just as they are counting the loot, they are interrupted by two black police officers who turn out to be small time crooks in disguise. They attempt to steal the money but the plan goes awry leading to the machine gun massacre of all the mob guys. The four perpetrators of the crime against the crooks make a hair-raising getaway, gunning down two legitimate police officers in the process. The NYPD is determined to find the culprits. Ordinarily, it would fall to veteran police captain Matelli (Anthony Quinn) to head the investigation. However, he's ordered to play a subordinate role to Lt. Pope, a young up-and-coming black detective (Yaphet Kotto) who the top brass believe might have more resources within the Harlem community. The notion of taking orders from someone with a subordinate rank infuriates Matelli and he had Pope have a strained relationship at best. "Across 110th Street" is a unique crime movie from this period on a number of levels. For one, the two main police protagonists don't dominate the movie. Most of the screen time is dedicated to the plight of the four hapless thieves who inadvertently caused a massacre. They split up and hope to stay under the radar in the wake of the crime. However, not only are the cops looking for them but so is the Harlem mob as well as Mafia goons headed by their enforcer, Nick D'Salvio (Anthony Franciosa). Everyone wants the stolen money and the frightened men who have it are in imminent danger. In some harrowing sequences, D'Salvio and his men track down three of the four thieves and render torturous street justice to them. The last remaining holdout is Jim Harris (superbly played by Paul Benjamin), the smartest of the group who manages to stay hidden thanks to the help of his sexy girlfriend. However, in an intriguing plot twist, his asthma leads to complications that result in a terrifically exciting finale as cops, mob guys and the Harlem crooks all race to get to him first.
The film was directed with admirable style by Barry Shear, who was primarily a TV director of repute, though he did helm the low-budget cult movie "Wild in the Streets" in 1968. Shear presents a flair not only for ambitious action sequences but also for intense dramatic scenes between the main characters. Anthony Quinn gets top billing and gives a fine performance as a world-weary cop who considers himself honest even though he is on the payroll of a Harlem crime king. He also thinks nothing of beating suspects and depriving them of legal representation, tactics that appall the more modern and progressive methods of Lt. Pope. The two men clash constantly and the inevitable racial and generational barriers between them becomes points of contention. This was an important film for Yaphet Kotto. Although he had been a respected character actor for years, this time around he got "above the title" billing with Quinn. His quiet intensity has always allowed him to steal every scene he is in and this is no exception. Kotto always brings dignity to the roles he plays, even if the characters are not very dignified. Anthony Franciosa also has a meaty role as the outwardly charming D'Salvio, who is, in reality, a merry sadist. Although he travels with goons and bodyguards, he enjoys getting his hands dirty and administrating the beatings and tortures himself. There are a couple of other "up-and-comers" seen in supporting roles including Burt Young and Gloria Hendry, who would go on to star with Yaphet Kotto in the James Bond hit "Live and Let Die" the following year. The film captures the look and feel of New York City at the low point in its history. Today, the city has undergone a Renaissance, as has many of the great American urban centers. Gotham routinely posts annual crime figures that are the lowest since the early 1960s. The city is a far cry from the era in which this film is made but one aspect of the movie remains uncomfortably relevant: the relationship between police and the minority community, as evidenced by continuous high profile cases that seem to erupt in the news every other day. Although most of these incidents now seem to take place outside of major urban areas, they provide proof that America has still not completely turned the corner on one of the most divisive aspects of its culture: race relations.
The film has been released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber Studio Classics. The transfer has a graininess to it that I believe represents the way the film was originally shot. In any event, it only adds to the grindhouse nature of the subject matter. "Across 110th Street" is a top-notch crime thriller from an era that boasted many top-notch crime thrillers. Essential viewing, if you like films from this era. The only bonus is trailer, which is a work print version that is lacking any on-screen titles or credits. In all, another welcome release from Kino Lorber.
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