Customer Reviews

Strike Force

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This movie is full of action! What makes this movie so great is because not only is it full of action and special effects, but it has a plot that you find yourself believing. And, you will think you are actually there as you watch the movie.

This film stars Richard Gere. It's one of those films no one has heard of, but it is outstanding. I was stunned at how good the movie actually was.

It's about a teenager who stumbles on a mob execution in progress. From there, the action starts, and never stops. You'll be on the edge of your seat until the end of the movie.

This even makes "The Sopranos" come alive in another plot with other players. This means you will love "The Sopranos" even more, and you will find a lot of their shows incorporated into this movie.

Get this film! You won't be disappointed!

This film will arrive with a big picture of Richard Gere on the cover but in reality he has a small part behind the real star of this picture Cliff Gorman. This film like "The Seven-Ups" is based on a original story by Sonny Grosso. The two stories are similar and both films are very good. The story is about a group of three cops forming an unlikely union in a "strike force" against drug dealers. They are blamed for drugs being smuggled right out of their offices and they have to not only bust the leader of the drug orginzation played by Joe Spinell but find the people responsible for the smuggling. The film is about 74 minutes long and I suspect it was made for TV which makes it a remarkable accomplishment for a made for TV movie. I gave this good French Connection like film only 4 stars because the quality of the DVD isnt terribly good but at the price this is selling used it is well worth the 5 to 7 dollars you will pay.

Transfer quality of ECHO BRIDGE (aka Platinum Disc) DVDs is good, although film stock is not always in the best of condition. A bargain price makes these lesser-known public domainers attractive.


STRIKE FORCE
Richard Gere's third film, some two years before his break out performance in LOOKING FOR MR. GOODBAR (1977) is this failed pilot for a French Connection-ish TV show. Lead Cliff Gorman is a NYC cop who teams with the Feds to battle a drug ring.


Parenthetical number preceding title is a 1 to 10 imdb viewer poll rating.

(3.4) Strike Force (TV-1975) - Cliff Gorman/Don Blakely/Richard Gere/Edward Grover/Joe Spinell

Got this movie on a whim and I love it. It is gritty and very New York. It feels like you are there. The plot is pretty good. This movie doesnt even show up on Gere's movie list though. I guess everyone thought it was a B movie.

The subject of this television pilot is an investigation of heroin trafficking in New York City, emphasizing a law enforcement task force and representatives of its three jurisdictional elements: a City Police detective (Cliff Gorman), an agent of the F.B.I. (Don Blakely) and a New York State trooper (Richard Gere), and their efforts to bring major criminals to bay. The tale is based on a story by Sonny Grosso and the production team is responsible for originating THE FRENCH CONNECTION, with the best scenes predictably those that propel the action yet allow local colour to tinge the proceedings. At only 74 minutes, the film bounds along briskly, but unfortunately this is due in the main to a large degree of cutting that grounds many scenes without a frame of reference to join them with the flow of the plot. A fundamental cause for the failure of the pilot to be accepted is a dearth of chemistry among the three leads, with Blakely and Gere (in his first cinema appearance) somewhat lacklustre, leaving Gorman, a fine actor, properly dominant, thereby shifting the relevance of the task force operation to an N.Y.P.D. focus. Heroin missing from the Department's Property Section becomes the principal investigative target for the three thrown-together partners, and resultant political ramifications for the Police Commissioner are touched upon, but only a trace of logic seeps through, leaving a viewer asea because of the storyline's untapped potential. Various New York City neighbourhoods serve as filming locations, the customary argots enhancing the episodic character of the butchered script, with Gorman utilized effectively amid the unknowing extras supplied by Gotham. Although the climax is rushed and certainly not memorable, the cinematography of Jack Priestley is, contributing immensely to the production's potential excitement, with primarily post-production decisions crippling the piece.

Very happy with this purchase. Movie is dated but well made. I am glad I bought it.