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MadiganRating:
Release Date: 17 March, 2003 Retail Price: $9.99 OUR Price: $9.99 You SAVE: $0.00! Cast: Complete Cast (14 total) |
Madigan Reviews
Historical Interest Only
Considering all the talent involved why is the film as disappointing as it is. Start with a script that can't decide whether it's third-rate soap opera or second-rate police drama, with enough trite sub-plots and dialogue to border on self-parody. Fleshing out the private lives behind the badges may be a workable idea, but here the many subplots detract rather than add to the overall effect. Then there are the performances. Widmark's aging Madigan appears not so much a burned-out case as an expressionless cypher, whose presence leaves the audience with nothing much to root for, and a long way from Widmark's usual intensity. Then too, whose idea was it to have the street tough Madigan go through an embarrassingly bad comedy scene with Henry Fonda that should have stayed on the cutting room floor, but somehow didn't. There's also Fonda's turn as police commissioner, a role that must have required him to swallow an ice cube first and a lemon second, because throughout, he appears too frozen to unbend and too sour to smile, a combination that results in a grimly overdone portrait of moral rectitude. (Just the thought of his character coupling with Susan Clarke is about as plausible as pairing Cher with Jerry Fallwell.) In fact, the entire cast apart from the poignant Inger Stevens, appears to be doing their scenes by the numbers, which is technically the fault of director Don Siegel. Except Siegel is a Hollywood master, who ordinarily directs with style and verve, and specializes in police-action dramas; yet here, with the exception of the shoot-out, there's none of the usual snap or polish. My guess is he took one look at the script and went for the payday, as did everyone else. I suspect too -- as another reviewer points out -- that the film's basic problem lies with the studio, Universal, which only recently had specialized in Doris Day comedy fluff. Here however it's 1966-67 -- city ghettos are on fire, change is in the air, and Hollywood is trying to play catch up. Though praised at the time, Madigan is now little more than proof of how painful the process was.
Worth it for the overused jazz score alone!
This 1968 film about NY Detectives hunting down a cop killer is not bad, but it also has weaknesses. Don Siegel, who succeeded with a much more superior cop film, Dirty Harry (1971), directed "Madigan", so titled after the lead character, Det. Daniel Madigan (Widmark). Madigan is a "hard-boiled" cop so obsessed with his job that he doesn't have any time for his bored & pretty blonde wife who sits around the house all day and watches TV waiting for him to come home and take her out. Henry Fonda is Anthony X. Russell, the Police Commissioner who "likes the book" (goes by it), but has a young mistress that he cheats on his wife with. The story is somewhat about Madigan and his partner Rocco Bonaro's (Don Siegel regular, Harry Guardino) letting a murderer go and then having to hunt him down in a few days time. The action scenes almost take a back seat to the troubled love lives of the both Madigan and Commissioner Russell. There is also a separate corruption plot concerning Russell's longtime friend & fellow cop, Chief Inspector Charles Kane (James Whitmore). One of the problems of "Madigan" is that too much time is spent on the wives and girlfriends of the two leads. It also doesn't help that there are no real likeable characters in the movie. Madigan is a drunk and is "in love" with his wife (who needs a job or a hobby) but he seems to love catching murderers more so he can't find time for her. Actually, he's not that good at his job either...lets put it this way...he's no Harry Callahan. His partner, Rocco, sits at his kitchen table (in his only scene at home) while his wife runs around making his dinner for him (this is definitely the late 60s) The Chief Inspector is corrupt, but the Commissioner, who sleeps around, decides to let it go. One thing I did enjoy was the overuse of music at improper times. When Madigan approaches this guy who's sitting in a bar the music sounds like he's about to walk in and start shooting but nothing happens...its the wrong guy! "Madigan" does have its strong suits: stylish direction by Siegel and authentic & gritty NY cinematography. There's also some cheezy dialogue and performances if you're into that...and I am. All this still doesn't make "Madigan" a must see, but it's interesting for fans of the genre and director Don Siegel (pre Dirty Harry). A better cop film in my opinion is "The Detective" (1968) starring Frank Sinatra, Jack Klugman, and Robert Duvall. Its got all the gritty locations, but the story and performances are far superior. Good luck finding it though because its currently out of print on all formats. Concerning the DVD of "Madigan", if you like the movie, go for it. Its presented in Widescreen Letterbox, has a trailer, and is very reasonably priced depending on where you go. Its one of those films that are becoming increasingly hard to find so if you like it...buy it soon.
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