Review of Vice Squad (1982) by Gary K — 15 Jul 2011
Caught this on IFC. The only thing you really need to know about "Vice Squad" is that Fred Berry -- Rerun on "What's Happening!!" -- does a cameo as a pimp.
Everything else about "Vice Squad" would seem almost routine by today's standards. For its time, the film stakes out some dark territory. For content, tone and topic, "Vice Squad" falls somewhere between Paul Schrader's "Hardcore" (1979) and "To Live and Die in LA" (1985). Although not as polished as those films, director Sherman delivers a solid crime drama. Clearly influenced by Scorsese's "Taxi Driver," he manages a movie more on par with Eastwood's "Tightrope" (1984).
Stars Hubley and Hauser are better than would be expected. Hubley was primarily known for TV roles. Hauser would debut with a type of manic, predatory character that he would revisit as a guest villain on shows like "The A-Team" and "Hunter" and direct-to-video thrillers in the 1990s.
This review of Vice Squad (1982) was written by Gary K on 15 Jul 2011.
Vice Squad has generally received positive reviews.
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