Movie

The Laughing Policeman

1973 · 112 min

A grimy, methodical police procedural that feels lived-in and weary, with a sour veteran's obsession grinding against a raw city.

Directed by: Stuart Rosenberg
Genres: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Starring: Walter Matthau, Bruce Dern, Louis Gossett Jr.

Tagline: This movie is so real it makes every other movie in this town look like a movie.
Overview: When a gunman opens fire on a crowded city bus in San Francisco, Detective Dave Evans is killed, along with the man he'd been following in relation to a murder. Evans' partner, Sgt. Jake Martin, becomes obsessed with solving the case.

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In the UKNo streaming, rental or purchase options known.

Directed by: Stuart Rosenberg
Genres: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Starring: Walter Matthau, Bruce Dern, Louis Gossett Jr.

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How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone: darkstrength 3 of 3
cynicalstrength 2 of 3
melancholicstrength 2 of 3
tensestrength 2 of 3
Pacing: measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention: engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes: obsession
crime
grief
justice
guilt
Places: big city
workplace
Era: contemporary
Audience: adult
Form: procedural
Content intensity: Gore mild
Language mild
Violence strong
Sex mild

All scales, 0 to 10

Scales, 0 to 10
Scale	Value	0 to 10
Action	5
Horror	3
Humour	3
Realism	8
Romance	1
Tension	7
Darkness	7
Complexity	6
Emotional weight	6

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Where to watch in the UK

No UK streaming, rental or purchase options are known.

Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

Details

Genres: crime, drama, thriller
Directed by: Stuart Rosenberg
Written by: Thomas Rickman, Stuart Rosenberg
Starring: Walter Matthau, Bruce Dern, Louis Gossett Jr., Albert Paulsen, Anthony Zerbe, Val Avery, Cathy Lee Crosby, Mario Gallo
Music: Charles Fox
Cinematography: David M. Walsh
Runtime: 112 min
Country: United States of America
Languages: English

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The Laughing Policeman

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