Review of The Laughing Policeman (1973) by Brian C — 21 Sep 2009
An excellent American adaptation of a Swedish mystery novel. Walter Matthau is wonderful as Jake Martin (from the original character, Martin Beck), and I wish that they had adapted at least a few more of the Beck novels with him continuing the role.
An excellent supporting cast with the likes of Bruce Dern and Louis Gossett Jr. The characters are very human - Matthau's Martin might be our lead, but he's at times a jerk, Dern's Leo Larsen is obnoxious, but a dedicated cop, etc.
Think of it as a less "cool" version of "Bullitt", complete with a chase at the end which is certainly inspired by the one from "Bullitt", but still worth seeing in its own right.
Frankly, there's nothing about this movie that I don't like, but what keeps me from giving it the full five stars is that, having read the original novel, the movie does lack some of the depth and dimension.
This review of The Laughing Policeman (1973) was written by Brian C on 21 Sep 2009.
The Laughing Policeman has generally received mixed reviews.
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