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Cops and Robbers

Play trailer Poster for Cops and Robbers PG 1973 1h 29m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 3 Reviews 29% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
Frustrated with their work and their meager paychecks, New York City police officers Joe (Joseph Bologna) and Tom (Cliff Gorman) decide to pull a heist while the city is distracted by a parade. After a meeting with a mobster who's looking for bearer bonds, the men rob a bank and walk away with millions of dollars in loot. But when a planned exchange of the bonds for cash goes awry, the officers try to fix the mess before their colleagues figure out who staged the crime.
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Cops and Robbers

Critics Reviews

View All (3) Critics Reviews
Eddie Harrison film-authority.com …well worth seeking out for fans of heist films, cop dramas and clever, satisfying endings.. Rated: 4/5 Nov 30, 2023 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews It seems confused about what to do about regular guy cops who get bitten by the greed bug and become dirty. Rated: B- Oct 27, 2012 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 2/5 Aug 3, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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ashley h Cops and Robbers is a disappointing film. It is about two disillusioned New York City policemen plan a ten million dollar robbery to fuel their low pensions. Joseph Bologna and Cliff Gorman give horrible performances. The script is badly written. Aram Avakian did a terrible job directing this movie. I was not impressed with this motion picture. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Entertaining (dark comedy) heist film by NYC police partners who think they can retire by fooling the Mafia. Of course this is fiction, but I found the film worth the watch. [img]http://i.ebayimg.com/t/1973-Cliff-Gorman-Cops-And-Robbers-Original-Signed-Autographed-Photo-147U-/00/s/NzY4WDEwMjQ=/$(KGrHqR,!pgE7BcvjGEHBO9Jj,wu2w~~60_35.JPG[/img] Our pair of ambitous cops Fast paced, never a dull moment. From the first minutes, you know this is dangerous business and risky too. Never heard of this one, but was worth the wait. Might be called improbable by many film buffs, but still it's well made. Michel Legrand, (Summer of '42, etc.) famous music composer of the time did the film. See the NYTimes review below. [img]https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSARIILl-scSfkAPDNqXV-ubtqq_tQEaQyrpM3CgRmnUL-PwabRKA[/img] A escape scene near the end of the film REVIEWS: 1 The New York Times: "If anybody had told me even a week ago about a funny, exciting, semi-plausible, exceptionally intelligent caper movie, I would not have believed him. "Cops and Robbers," despite its title, and despite the slightly dumb-dumb ad campaign that is introducing it, is all those good things and more. It is uncommonly well acted. And it is the first movie in a long time to understand, rather than merely to exploit, its New York City locales."--- Greenspun, Roger (August 16, 1973). [img]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/ac/Cops_and_robbers_%28film_poster%29.jpg/220px-Cops_and_robbers_%28film_poster%29.jpg[/img] SEE it all here at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHDZIlzROVU "Tom and Joe are disillusioned New York cops who decide to pull off one big robbery in their uniforms and retire on the proceeds. Bearer bonds are what the local Mafia boss will buy, so that's what they go for. Central Park is the location for the switch." --- wikipedia Cliff Gorman - Tom Joseph Bologna - Joe Charlene Dallas - Secretary James Ferguson - Liquor Store Clerk Frances Foster - Bleeding Lady Gayle Gorman - Mary Walt Gorney - Wino George Harris II - Harry Ellen Holly - Ms. Wells Randy Jurgensen - Randy [img]http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/D9e9nBxN8dQ/hqdefault.jpg[/img] Despite the red neckerchiefs on thier faces here, they never wore this in the movie Directed by Aram Avakian Produced by Elliott Kastner George Pappas Written by Donald E. Westlake Music by Michel Legrand Cinematography David L. Quaid Editing by Barry Malkin Distributed by United Artists Release date(s) August 15, 1973 (New York City) August 17, 1973 (U.S. wide) February 25, 1974 (Sweden) March 29, 1974 (Finland) Running time 89 min. Country United States Language English [img]http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/ogUOeazw6hg/hqdefault.jpg[/img] Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/19/23 Full Review Audience Member The 1970s were a golden period for offbeat and interesting films and it was probably the last time that directors held all the aces when it came to getting certain films made . This neglected little gem certainly proves the argument as celebrated crime writer Donald E Westlake turned in this interesting spin on the heist movie. Tom and Joe are two hardworking New York cops who are tired of taking on dangerous cases for little reward and seeing the mean streets of New York get considerably meaner. When Joe holds up a Liquor store and gets away with it, Tom hits on a plan to rob a secure office of Barrow bonds and then fence them to a vain gangster . What follows is a whipsmart heist film with plenty of drama and some comedy along the way . Cliff Gorman and Joseph Bologna are excellent as the two robbing cops and the film is full of New York character actors who always pop up in films like this througout the 70s. The direction is a little wonky in places but on the whole this is a real entertaning little crime movie. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/23/23 Full Review Audience Member A well off-the-radar NYC copper crime caper, set and filmed in the early 1970s. Accordingly filled with authentic location city shoots, props and sounds. Two Manhattan beat cops (one of whom is a young Joe Bologna with a foppish hair-do) decide to fund their own widows' and orphans' kitty by boosting $10 million worth of bearer bonds out of Wall Street and, in Act 3, selling them to the Mob. The vibe is much like "The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3," and also yields the same gritty NYC nostalgia found in films such as "Serpico" and "The French Connection." Though this film is not at the level of quality of those classics, it will likely yield a pleasant 100 minutes of viewing for those who enjoyed those other films. I caught it when TCM served it up at 2:15am on a Wednesday morning. If only they'd sent along a couple of greasy slices and a canoli from the corner pizzeria, it would have been the perfect time trip. RECOMMENDATION: Mangia! Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/14/23 Full Review Audience Member Two run-down veteran cops in NYC decide to try to pull off an armed robbery. Intrigued? Check it out. Pretty funny stuff. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Cops and Robbers

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Movie Info

Synopsis Frustrated with their work and their meager paychecks, New York City police officers Joe (Joseph Bologna) and Tom (Cliff Gorman) decide to pull a heist while the city is distracted by a parade. After a meeting with a mobster who's looking for bearer bonds, the men rob a bank and walk away with millions of dollars in loot. But when a planned exchange of the bonds for cash goes awry, the officers try to fix the mess before their colleagues figure out who staged the crime.
Director
Aram Avakian
Producer
Elliott Kastner
Screenwriter
Donald E. Westlake
Production Co
Elliott Kastner Productions
Rating
PG
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (DVD)
Aug 1, 2006
Runtime
1h 29m
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