The Detective (1968)

Simply Perfect

Really Surprised!

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

Awesome Movie

When it was first released in 1968,THE DETECTIVE was very daring in it's use of 'adult' themes such as homosexuality,nymphomania and questionable police practices,but time has taken it's toll and it has inevitably since been well outclassed in the particular above fields,further weakened by a welter of sub-plots (not helped by somewhat confusing flashbacks),and unconvincing,over-emphatic production values.By-the-book cop Joe Leland (Frank Sinatra) investigates the murder of a young gay man of a well-to-do family,while also trying to negotiate his way through police and local authority corruption,and having difficulties with his disturbed,nymphomaniac wife (Lee Remick) whose life has been marred by a rootless,unhappy childhood through the foster care system.Leland apparently finds the gay killer (Tony Musante), and observes his execution shortly afterwards, but a young widow (Jacqueline Bisset) of a wealthy businessman (William Windom) provides evidence that suggests to Leland that the case is not all as it seems.To be fair to THE DETECTIVE,it was breaking new ground at the time in it's storyline and subject matter in mainstream US film-making.And the acting involved is consistently pretty good.Sinatra is fine as a cynical,world-weary cop who has been there and seen it all,but still possesses a distinct moral integrity,whether it be fury at the often violent,bigoted attitudes of his colleagues,anger at local authority financial corruption at the expense of those who live in 'garbage cans',or heartbreak at the sexually loose behaviour of his wife Remick,leading to the destruction of his marriage.Ms Remick herself is also excellent in her relatively underwritten role,making us feel sympathy for the tragic,rather pathetic events in childhood that led to such severe adult psychological torments.Other performers like Jack Klugman,a similarly liberal-inclined colleague of Frank's,and Robert Duvall,as a wrathful,boorish associate,are perfectly adequate,but are all eventually affected by the sheer excess of heated characters and melodrama which seriously teeter on the edge of unintended farce.The slow,methodical pace engendered by Gordon Douglas,along with Sinatra's admirable underplaying, just about curtails the film from going into over-the-top stupidity,but it's a close run thing,with rampantly stereotyped homosexuals,garishly decorated gay bars,and an overly strident performance by Tony Musante as the thuggish would-be gay killer which showed that US film-making had a long way to go in portraying homosexuality in a more realistic and compassionate light.The naivety and and ham-fistedness in THE DETECTIVE regarding these matters is quite something to see nowadays,though of course what was realistic and daring 40 years ago shows what has been learned by us all since then.Douglas' other traits of direction have also badly dated (like full on close-ups of characters' in conversation), but what really drags the film down is the almost total lack of any humorous relief.Actors like Sinatra,Klugman,Remick et al are capable comic actors when given the chance,but the solemn,portentous,po-faced script gives them no opportunities whatsoever,which is a shame as shards of humour may have enhanced the drama involved and not made it come across as excessively melodramatic.THE DETECTIVE now seems an mildly interesting period piece,made at a time just before US movies became more permissive with the use of profanity and depictions of sexual acts and graphic violence.It may have actually benefited from being made several years later with such freedoms;as it is,THE DETECTIVE now seems oddly repressed,ingenuous,slick and unrealistic,saved just about by some decent,persuasive performances at it's centre.RATING:6 out of 10.

Excellent film with Frank Sinatra as a police officer with a conscience and a heart. This picture is riveting in that it exposes a city and its police department for corruption and anti-gay bias.Lee Remick is the enigma in this gritty film. She plays Sinatra's wife, an orphan who became a psychology professor, but yet has some pretty severe emotional hang-ups.The Police Department honors its own when they produce. It seems as if the Department couldn't care less how the results are retrieved.The film also offers a strong criticism of the death penalty. Emotional factors of the defendant were ignored here and a tragedy resulted.The picture ties in the killing of an innocent man and corruption of city officials very well. The fear of being labeled a homosexual is still another theme in this remarkable film.

I really didn't know what to expect from this film, except that Frank is going to be a detective and probably tough, with lots of girls around him. What I got was an intelligent and realistic look at the police dept. in the 60s probing into society's sexual differences in the death of a homosexual. It has a great cast, including Lee Remick, who's always great and who seems to be attracted to movies of this ilk, like Experiment in Terror and No Way to Treat a Lady. It makes good use of time and place, and its use of flashbacks comes off surprisingly well, to portray the courtship of Frank and Lee, which you don't expect in a movie with a violent subplot in it. (But which is the subplot?) But I did appreciate its time in telling his own personal life, rather than just centering on his case. And, he's not surrounded by girls. So, if you're looking for something flashy like Dean Martin's Matt Helm, this isn't for you. It's better; it's a mature film with real life consequences. (But, yes, there is a murder to solve and Frank does it in 60s style.)

The nineteen fifties were a time of adaption for many police departments throughout the United States. The rubber hoses, the brutal interrogations, bright lights and smoke filled rooms were commonplace. So too were the results. Few guilty men escaped punishment and fewer still were the innocents who got away. During the next few decades, so much brutality became prevalent, a new force took on the cops. In this film, "The Detective" the audience witnesses the early seeds of Law Enforcement Officers and the evolution of Miranda rights. It is the story (written by Roderick Thorp) of an idealistic officer named Det. Sgt. Joe Leland (Frank Sinatra). He is the son of a policeman and believes in his work. The victim is the son of a prominent politician, who has been is brutally murdered. What Leland discovers in his investigation is far more than the murdered man's sexual preference, but rather the lengths others will go to cover it up. With Dave Schoenstein (Jack Klugman) as his partner, they inadvertently discover a powerful and ruthless organization called 'Rainbo'. Key to the murder, a puzzling suicide and to Rainbo are Dr. Wendell Roberts (Lloyd Bochner) and William Windom. If you'll look closely, you see a young Robert Duvall and Tony Musante. The importance of this film are the taboo subjects explored as the investigation continues. Unlike today, such subjects did not warrant prominence and yet this film offers them up raw and unfettered. Lee Remick gives a stirring performance as Karen Leland. All in all, an excellent film from a changing time. ****