Product Details

• Actors: George C. Scott, Stacy Keach, Jane Alexander, Scott Wilson, Rosalind Cash
• Directors: Richard Fleischer
• Writers: Joseph Wambaugh, Robert Towne, Stirling Silliphant
• Producers: Henry Gellis, Irwin Winkler, Robert Chartoff
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Sony Pictures
• VHS Release Date: June 24, 1994
• Run Time: 103 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6302797543
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #215,182 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Fans of the TV series Police Story and Hill Street Blues will dig this gritty 1972 drama based on Joseph Wambaugh's groundbreaking first novel. George C. Scott is in his element as Kilvinski, the philosophical 20-year veteran who mentors his new night shift partner, Roy (Stacy Keach), a "slick-sleeved" rookie. "Kilvinski's Law," he growls, "If a dude uses his fist, you use your stick. If he uses a stick you use your gun." Quincy Jones' Shaft-ian score gives the film a funky '70s vibe. Jane Alexander costars as Roy's neglected spouse, with Eric Estrada and Scott Wilson as fellow rookies, and Isabel "Weesie" Sanford as one of a vanful of prostitutes the partners roust in one of the few sequences played for laughs. Directed by Richard Fleischer (Compulsion) and written by Academy Award-winner Stirling Silliphant (In the Heat of the Night), The New Centurions deglamorizes the cop drama with gallows humor and sudden and shocking violence. It is a little dated, but in portraying the dangers and stresses that beat cops face everyday, The New Centurions is not, to quote Kilvinski, the same old "Hollywood crap." --Donald Liebenson




Stills from The New Centurions (Click for larger image)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Possibly the best Police movie ever, July 19, 2003

By 

"rhyatt4" (Tombstone, Arizona) - See all my reviews

This review is from: New Centurions [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This movie inspired me to a law enforcement career that lasted 28 years. George C. Scott (Officer Kilvinsky) delivers one of his best performances as a veteran patrolman of the L.A.P.D. He teaches a rookie cop "Stacy Keach" how to survive on the streets of L.A. Erik Estrada plays a former gang banger that turned cop, only to find himself working patrol in his old stomping grounds. The realism was great. No doubt they used police advisors when making the film. A sad movie that will make you realize that cops are human. Kilvinsky the cynical cop, shows compassion in dealing with illegal Mexican immigrants that are being taken advantage of by a money grubbing landlord. Stacy Keach suffers a failed marriage and gets involved in an interracial relationship. Truly a gut wrenching movie that shows the brutality of police work, both mentally and physically. I'd pay a hundred dollars if I could get the movie on DVD.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Police Drama, August 29, 2008

By 

Dave P. (Nashville, TN) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The New Centurions (DVD)

If you like police movies, you'll love this one. Stacy Keach and Erik Estrada (CHiPs, in one of his first movies) are graduates of the police academy as they begin their careers within the police department. Of special interest is the relationship between Keach and George C. Scott (a seasoned veteran looking forward to retirement).

This is a true-to-life story of cops and their daily struggles as they balance their jobs with their personal life. George C. Scott is excellent in this movie and worth watching for his acting alone. Stacy Keach gives a great performance as a new cop juggling family and his quest to further his career beyond the police department.

Plenty of action sequences and a true depiction of the struggles that our police force face on a daily basis. Watch Erik Estrada in one of his earliest roles.

A must see movie for action, drama, and life on the streets. I own the VHS version and I am glad that this movie was finally released on DVD. A true classic.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Cop Movie of all time, September 14, 2003

By 

Graham D. (Covington, Georgia United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: New Centurions [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Words cant truly express how realistic this movie is. It faces the harsh realities of police work, most havent changed since this movie was made.