Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows FanStore News Showtimes

Busting

Play trailer Poster for Busting R 1974 1h 32m Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
17% Tomatometer 6 Reviews 53% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
Los Angeles vice cops Michael Keneely (Elliott Gould), tall and hunched, and Patrick Farrell (Robert Blake), short and resentful, tidy up the streets from the drug dealers, prostitutes and petty thugs without fuss -- or much real interest. Goaded by the brash conceit of mobster chief Carl Rizzo (Allen Garfield), the eclectic partners go after him, earning not only his wrath but that of the their department superiors, who would rather that Keneely and Farrell stick to going after petty criminals.
Watch on Prime Video Stream Now

Where to Watch

Busting

Critics Reviews

View All (6) Critics Reviews
Steve Warren The Barb (Atlanta) This movie is indefensible on cinematic grounds. May 9, 2023 Full Review Gregory Mims New Pittsburgh Courier By itself, Busting exists as a tough little urban police drama with moralistic pretensions. However, in a longer view, from the field, the film is merely a combination of every city cop movie you've ever seen. Dec 13, 2021 Full Review Eddie Harrison film-authority.com ...in portraying life as a steaming cess-pit of prostitution, homophobia and general degradation, Busting lays the old, familiar story out in no short order... Rated: 4/5 Sep 3, 2021 Full Review Dick Lochte Los Angeles Free Press Moods are dissolved by off-hand joke punch lines. Dec 17, 2019 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 2/5 Jun 11, 2005 Full Review Steve Crum Kansas City Kansan Forgettable Blake/Gould hippie generation flick Rated: 1/5 Oct 23, 2004 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (20) audience reviews
bob c Junk, 1974 style. Has a pretty blonde. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 02/19/25 Full Review Audience Member Underrated Elliott Gould and Robert Blake film from the 70s. Almost like a precursor to the buddy cop films of the 80s, both lead co-stars have great chemistry onscreen, often exchanging dialogue and jokes at an easy amicable pace. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Audience Member Elliot Gould and Robert Blake are vice cops who find, after a series of their arrests are quashed by higher ups, that gangster Allen Garfield is behind most of the crime they encounter. They dedicate themselves to taking him down, even though nobody, including the police, seem to want him taken down. This flick has an extremely relaxed pace and amiable tone to it, and then kind of sneaks up on you as it gets increasingly intense. Gould and Blake feel like a really odd pairing on paper, but they play off each other really well. Sid Haig plays Garfield's main muscle guy, and Antonio Fargas and Michael Lerner also show up. This is the kind of film that seems underwhelming, but when it's done, you realize you really enjoyed it. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/01/23 Full Review Audience Member Solid buddy cop movie from 1974. Good chemistry between Blake and Gould. Gritty but not excessive in its depiction of vice with liberal doses of humor and an interesting story. Gould's laconic, world weary performance reminded me of his turn in the Long Goodbye. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/16/23 Full Review Audience Member If you like your cop stories realistic and filled with cynical wisecracking the you'll like this. Very 70's but interesting anyway even if it is episodic and filled with too many tracking shots. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/12/23 Full Review camille l Busting est un film plutôt amusant pendant sa deuxième heure, lorsque l'intrigue se met réellement en route, grâce aux interprétations adéquates d'Elliott Gould, Robert Blake et Allen Garfield (particulièrement excellent). Avant ça, le réalisateur et son scénariste ne semblent pas savoir où ils veulent en venir et on s'ennuie poliment avant de rencontrer le grand bad guy. Ce ne serait pas si grave si le film de Peter Hyams ne souffrait pas autant de ses nombreux changements de ton et de ses gags un peu archaïques. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Busting

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

View All Cast and Crew

More Like This

View All Best Movies to Stream at Home
True Confessions 69% 53% True Confessions Watchlist Thieves Like Us 81% 72% Thieves Like Us Watchlist The Long Goodbye 95% 87% The Long Goodbye Watchlist Death Wish 66% 69% Death Wish Watchlist TRAILER for Death Wish Foxy Brown 59% 66% Foxy Brown Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More
View All Busting photos

Busting

Busting (1974) Busting (1974) Busting (1974) Busting (1974) Busting (1974) Busting (1974) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Los Angeles vice cops Michael Keneely (Elliott Gould), tall and hunched, and Patrick Farrell (Robert Blake), short and resentful, tidy up the streets from the drug dealers, prostitutes and petty thugs without fuss -- or much real interest. Goaded by the brash conceit of mobster chief Carl Rizzo (Allen Garfield), the eclectic partners go after him, earning not only his wrath but that of the their department superiors, who would rather that Keneely and Farrell stick to going after petty criminals.
Director
Peter Hyams
Producer
Irwin Winkler, Robert Chartoff
Screenwriter
Peter Hyams
Production Co
United Artists, Chartoff-Winkler Productions
Rating
R
Genre
Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 30, 2016
Runtime
1h 32m
Most Popular at Home Now