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Homicide Life on the Street: Subway [VHS]

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One of Homicide's best episodes, "The Accident" or "Subway Show," premiered during its creative low point. Like a lot of Homicide fans, I wasn't happy with the direction the series took in its final two seasons. I won't rehash the typical complaints other than to say that, even during that time, the show was still one of the greatest in television history whenever it forgot about its new "supercops" and focused on the fiery, iconic Detective Frank Pembleton. Pembleton was a rarity -- a believable human being who seemed, at times, to speak with the voice of God. He gave the show's grim proceedings a much needed moral compass. One knew that as long as Pembleton was walking the streets, then the darkness erupting all around wouldn't be allowed to envelop the world.

In "The Subway," Pembleton literally becomes, if not God, then perhaps the equivalent of St. Peter. When a commuter (brilliantly played by Vincent D'Onofrio) is pushed in front of a moving train, the unfortunate man finds himself literally hanging between life and death. Suspended between the train and the platform, he is questioned by Pembleton concerning who might have pushed him. But if this sounds like a gimmick, then be aware that this show deals with so much more. During their conversation, D'Onofrio and Pembleton confront the issues of life, death, fate, and faith that fueled the show since its premiere -- issues that many fans correctly felt the show had mistakenly moved away from during the final two seasons. Pembleton becomes almost a father confessor for D'Onofrio. Perhaps most arrestingly (for me at least), is that D'Onofrio's victim isn't presented in an extremely sympathetic light. While other shows would have idealized him, Homicide makes it victim out to be a self-centered, vain jerk. He is a man forced to confront the whole of his still young life in one hour and for him, that subway platform becomes his purgatory. Not what you'd typically expect to see on television and one of the main reasons why I've always thought of this show as Homicide's proper swan song.

As for the documentary included with the video, its a fun watch and definitely will be enjoyable to any true Homicide fan. However, even if the tape was composed only of this episode, it would be a must have for anyone serious about how television can truly create a work of art.

I have never had such a visceral reaction to any piece of drama, live or on big screen or small.

I'd long been a Homicide fan, so I was well aware of Andre Braugher's skill, but Vincent D'Onofrio's performance was a revelation. His character is Everyschmuck, the Bud Lite-swilling blowhard found in any bar on any Saturday night, under-tipping the bartender and copping a feel from the cocktail waitress.

But as he slowly discovers his fate, he strips away his schmuckness in layers, like an onion, with Braugher's Pembleton as Father Confessor and keeper of the knowledge that he is doomed. Together they reveal the character's essential humanity and vulnerability.

Pembleton is our surrogate, I think, because he doesn't like this guy much either, but goes in to do his job, and is eventually touched by him, as we are.

My words are feeble. Just see it.

If you're reading this, chances are you're already a fan of Homicide to some degree. Some early fans of the show became disenchanted with the program as its run on NBC progressed, feeling that it became more conventional. While it's true that the show's later seasons used less of the stirring camera-work which was the show's visual trademark in the early episode, the stories told were no less compelling.

A case in point is season six's "The Accident" or as it's commonly known "the subway episode." When a commuter becomes pinned between a subway train and the platform, detectives Tim Bayliss and Frank Pembleton are called in, because the accident victim is alsmost certainly going to die. As Bayliss tries to determine what caused the accident, Pembleton (as played by Emmy-winner Andre Braugher) forms an uneasy bond with the victim (played by Vincent D'Onofrio). With Homicide, the focus was always less on what the detectives revealed about their cases and more on what the detectives revealed about themselves as human beings.

Of all Homicide's detectives none showed us more of what was good and bad about human beings than Frank Pembleton. In the context of the show, Pembleton was not only the best investigator in the squad, he was also the moral center, a good man whose sense of right and wrong never fails, soemone who will always remain on the right side of that line even if it means offending those who care about him. As he tries to comfort the victim whom he knows is about to die, Pembleton confronts his own beliefs and notions of faith and goodness. The interplay between the two characters is as insightful, gripping and well-written as anything committed to film in years, and more than anything this is probably the episode which earned Andre Braugher his Emmy award.

This episode also went on to win the Peabody award and was the subject of a fascinating documentary called "Anatomy of a Homicide." In addition to focusing on the specifics of writing and producing "the subway episode," it is also an intriguing window into the politics of television network programming. That documentary is available on this tape along with the full episode. Homicide never quite got its due during its network run, but the availability of these two productions may help redress that balance.

Could this be the best hour of television ever? Who was it at NBC that had the balls yet was so lacking in brains as to cancel this show? This episode alone should have been enough to keep this show running forever. What writer/producer James Yoshimura, director Gary Fleder, and actors Kyle Secor, Andre Bragher and guest star Vincent D'Onofrio do together is create what is quite possibly the best hour of television ever produced. With all the (deserved) hype flying around THE SOPRANOS, SIX FEET UNDER, SEX AND THE CITY, and OZ (also created by Tom Fontana), it is easy to forget that every once in a while network television stumbles on to something good (a MIAMI VICE, a SEINFELD)... and in this case, it may just be the best ever.

Andre Braugher is at his finest in this episode, one of the series' most heart-wrenching. Guest star D'Onofrio is convincing as the victim. The show picks up on several familiar themes of HOMICIDE: the randomness of crimes, the disinterest of perpetrators, and the futility of seeking an explanation.

Equally compelling, though, is the companion documentary that reveals how difficult it was for the production team to get the episode made and aired. You really get a feel for the passion of the show's creators, and you find yourself rooting for them as they go up against the NBC brass.

The documentary is a great introduction to the ins-and-outs of network TV. I showed it (and the episode) to my students in a high school film class to give them an idea about what goes into making a television show. They were as entranced by the behind-the-scenes footage as they were by the actual episode.

This tape is a great intro to those who have never seen the show, but also a must-have for dedicated H:LOTS fans.

"Homicide: Life on the Streets" was always a favorite of the critics, but it never garnered the ratings success that it so fittingly deserved. Featuring one of the most gifted ensemble casts ever put together (especially the brilliant Andre Braugher with exemplary support from Yaphet Kotto, Kyle Secor and Clark Johnson), "Homicide" should still be on NBC's schedule, right there with the respective "Law & Order's" and "ER".

If one episode clearly exemplifies the intensity and the quality of the series' writing, as well as the skills of the actors, it is "Subway". Braugher gets to run the gamut of his emotions as he deals with the hopeless situation of guest star Vincent D'onofrio, also giving an award winning turn as the trapped commuter.

The episode is a nail-biter and a prime example of what television should be.

There is no doubt that Homicide was an incredible show during the entire run of the series with the exception of season 6 and 7. However, the best episode of the series by far was The Subway.

The Subway follows the story of the attempted/successful murder of a man going off to his office for another day when he is pushed into the oncoming path of a subway train getting caught inbetween two cars. Det(s). Pembleton and Bayliss(Andre Braugher and Kyle Secor)race to the scene to find out all they can about the situation before their witness/victim dies on them.

This episode was the most riveting and suspense filled episode I have ever seen during this show's run. It had you in it's grip and wouldn't let go until the screen faded to black and the credits came up. The performance by victim Vincent D'nofrio was incredible and unforgettable.

This episode alone is the best HOMICIDE I've ever seen. Barring the undeniably brilliant perfomances by Vincent D'Onofrio and Andre Braugher, the story is captivating and the tensions sweet torture! The difficulty of knowing a man is going to die and the struggle to do his job as a cop and so much more... What an episode! That aside, as I said, the documentary is a real view of the politics of network television and the complete bliss of getting what you want. They had a great guest star, a script that worked, and a producer/writer determined to get what he wanted! Just great, a MUST for HOMICIDE or D'Onofrio fans!

This is extraordinary acting - vincent D'Onofrio, Andre Braugher (always fabulous in this series) and the other great "Homicide" cast - but this story is amazing. Seemed almost more like a stage production than film/television. I saw the story as a metaphor - life, death, the meaning, the randomness versus design of it all, responsibility/lack thereof, the train....all of it. Extremely powerful in every way. Original, powerful, brilliant work.

I watched Homicide: Life on the Street, for all the years it was on and this is by far one of the best episodes. And all of them are terriffic, which says a lot.

Here is the story of a man caught halfway under a subway, knowing this is the end of his road. Excellent and very notable performances by everyone.

top notch.