Limerculer A waste of 90 minutes of my life

Baseshment I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

AnhartLinkin This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Adeel Hail Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

Mark Turner In 1971 while working as a police officer Joseph Wambaugh had his first novel published, THE NEW CENTURIONS, to popular and critical praise. His depiction of the average cop on the beat presented a different view than most readers had experienced in the past. Coming from someone living the life it added the authenticity to his books as well. This first novel was so popular it didn't take long for Hollywood to grab up the rights and from that this movie was released a year later.The film follows three police academy grads in 1960 beginning with their first assignment and following them for several years, focusing mainly on Roy Fehler (Stacy Keach). Roy is partnered with long timer Andy Kilvinski (George C. Scott), a cop who knows the streets better than most and handles them in his own fashion. He provides insight to Roy via "Kilvinski's laws", his interpretations of the law that makes things run smooth and rarely upsets the balance of what happens on the street.An example of this is displayed the first night the pair are assigned the paddy wagon to pick up street walkers. Rather than arrest them, book them and then find them on the street again with nothing affected but the time it took to do paperwork, Kilvinski instead buys them a bottle of whiskey, puts them in the wagon and drives them around most of the night. The end result keeps them off the street and requires less bureaucratic bologna. As the film moves forward we witness a chance in Roy as he goes from an officer who took the job in order to pay for college and become a lawyer to an officer who loves the work he does. This come at a cost since it disrupts his marriage to Dorothy (Jane Alexander) who feels he's sold out the plans they had. While patrolling one night Kilvinski goes in to observe a potential robbery taking place leaving Roy to watch and wait for backup. Seeing a couple in a car, he approaches to tell them to move on only to be shot point blank with a shotgun. The couple were part of the robbery.Unaffected by the shooting Roy heals and gets back on the job. As the year mark for the rookies hits he's back on the beat as Kilvinski hits his 25 year mark and mandatory retirement. The two part ways with the intent to get together again but time passes and the odds of that happening decrease until a shocking event happens in Kilvinski's life. Roy is promoted to the vice squad and about the same time Dorothy chooses to leave him taking their daughter Becky with her. Affected by everything taking place around him Roy turns to alcohol both on and off the job. Where it will lead is anyone's guess until the end of the film.There are several things that make this movie work better than most of the genre. The first is the depiction of police as presented by Wambaugh. These are human being with faults just like the rest of us. They are still heroes, men willing to put their lives on the line to protect and serve society. But doing so as a career takes its toll on each of them in different ways. The movie also has that gritty streetwise look to it found in numerous films from the seventies. It's not a glossed over movie set that we get to see here but the mean streets of LA that are on view. The station house isn't the pristine complex so many TV series now use but the beat down grimly painted station that actually exist. The acting here offers solid performances all around. Keach shines as Roy, a man whose life choices change and who is affected by those changes. Scott remains a force to be reckoned with as the most influential character on screen. What happens to him here is sure to stun those not prepared. Rounding out the two other rookies are Scott Wilson as Gus, the wide eyed innocent who learns how difficult things will be early on and Erik Estrada as Serge, completely wasted here in what amounts to a bit part. This genre of film that was so popular in the seventies is a joy to go back and watch now. With movies like THE FRENCH CONNECTION and more coming out on blu-ray they have the chance to be discovered all over again. This one is a great representation of those films. If you're a fan of Wambaugh then this edition of the film will be a welcome one as Twilight Time is offering the film in the cleanest picture ever. They're also offering more extras than usual here including an isolated music track, an audio commentary track with Wilson and film historian Nick Redman, an audio commentary track with film historians Lee Pfeiffer and Paul Scrabo and the original theatrical trailer. And, as with all Twilight Time releases, this version is limited to just 3,000 copies so if you're interested buy yours today.

John T. Ryan THAT AUTHOR AND former L.A. Cop, Joseph Wambbaugh ascended to the heights of pop culture in the 1970s surely was neither a fluke nor should it have been a surprise. Due to the great period of unrest and defiance of all that is "establishment", the Police of America were called to the main stage, front & center, in the spotlight, etc.GARNERING ALL OF this ink, the next logical steps were to have someone tell the Cops' story and then to produce popular entertainments with Police as the subject. Furthermore, the guys in blue were the logical successors to all those six-gun toting dudes from all of the Westerns that glutted the TV tubes and the Matinée Playbills during the 1950s and '60s.BEGINNING HIS CAREER as an author while still an active Policeman on the Los Angeles P.D., THE NEW CENTURIONS was his first published novel; as well as the first to be adapted to the screen. The author gives his best effort in looking beyond the uniform and badge; penetrating into the very souls of the guys who do the job.IN CASTING THE parts of the "Rookie" and the "Old-Timer", we have Stacey Keach and George C. Scott. In every respect, the two are defined ion bold relief to one another. Officer Kilvinski (Mr. Scott) is pragmatic, instinctive and proactive. Likes so many street veterans, Kilvinski has his own rules and methods.BEING THE ANTITHOSIS of this approach, Officer Kehler (Stacey Keach) is educated, polished "by the book". His very image was that of the "modern" law enforcement official. Slim, trim and fit, his very figure is that of an illustration for a modern police training manual.BUT, THIS TOO comes to an end when his marriage dashes on the rocks. He next he resorts to hitting the bottle, Before we know it, he is a full blown alcoholic. By this time, he is at least a journeyman and well on his way to superseding Kilvinski as the grizzled veteran.AND SPEAKING OF Kilvinski, he has retired by this time. He does, however, still maintain contact with his former pupil. Lamenting the loneliness of his retirement and reminiscing about the old days in a phone call, Kilvinski turns his service revolver on himself.HOPING FOR SOME solutions to his own problems, Kehler meets an answer to a prayer; while he was being treated for on the job injuries in the local ER. It is here that he finds his new love in the Nurse, who treats him.NOW BEING SERIOUSLY involved, putting the booze behind him and seemingly straightening out his life, he is fatally shot in the last part of a midnight to morning tour of duty.AUTHOR WAMBAUGH AND the production team managed to squeeze all of the main problems of the police into one story; not living happily after ever.

cultfilmfreaksdotcom Whether it's an exploitive early 70's crime flick with an underlying mainstream influence, or a mainstream cop movie that sporadically delves into a gritty no-nonsense peripheral, THE NEW CENTURIONS is an entertaining piece of cinema…After an opening credit montage of rookies – including Stacy Keach's Roy Fehler, Scott Wilson's Gus and Erik Estrada's Sergio – training at the police academy, we skip right to the chase… well, almost. Your typical gruff sergeant (Dolph Sweet) is barking orders to a group of world-weary police officers…And with a fresh rookie partner in tow, they enter into the dark Noiry streets of downtown Los Angeles.At first, the centerpiece is George C. Scott's veteran cop Kilvinski, who, with his own implied "laws" aka philosophies of life, provides Roy exposition through random busts including bickering prostitutes and, cutting back and forth from Clifton James's Whitey paired with Gus, and Ed Lauter with former gang member Sergio, domestic dispute calls that wind up humorously reminiscent of a television cop show.But there's a point where CENTURIONS, compared by Kilvinski as a new brand of Roman guard – equally hated and needed by that society like our own – kicks into second gear. Standout scenes include Scott Wilson's Gus gunning down an innocent man… The IN COLD BLOOD actor's shocked/life-altering expression, as well as Estrada's Sergio explaining his backstory as a gang member reluctantly brought back to his hellish home town, make this more character-driven than action-packed.Although noted as a vehicle for the Oscar-winning Scott, remaining the wise mentor till a gloomy retirement, the story truly belongs to Stacy Keach, whose character-arc from an idealistic rookie to a seasoned cop to a reluctant vice squad officer to a hopeless drunk is underlined by the dwindling relationship with his wife and child: the domestic scenes border on melodrama but never take away from the gritty mainline… We always promptly return to the streets. Based on a novel by former lawman Joseph Wambaugh, insightful glimpses outshine the sporadic cinematic clichés, and a few scenes would be considered politically-incorrect to modern audiences. But underrated director Richard Fleischer… whose eclectic hit/miss career labeled him more of a talented hired hand than creative auteur… using his signature grainy film stock makes even the lighter moments look and feel completely intense and (despite a tacked-on conclusion) jarringly unpredictable.

dbdumonteil Richard Fleischer is arguably one of the most underrated American directors.He tackled almost all the genres and almost always succeeded,except in his last years (roughly from "Ashanti" on).The detective movie was always one of his numerous specialties.It's a long way from the (often remarkable) first works ,such as "the clay pigeon" and "follow me quietly" to the psychological thrillers ("compulsion" ) to the stunning serial killer stories of the early seventies/late sixties "10 Rillington place" and "The Boston strangler"."The new centurions" is something drastically different,which can't be compared to any of Fleischer's previous works in the field.Fleischer's pessimistic side which was in the latent state in "compulsion" or "10 Rillington Place" , surfaces here as ever.It depicts the life of a cop (although George C Scott's name comes first in the cast and credits,he is actually supporting )played by Stacy Keach (a far cry from Mike Hammer;it's curious to notice he sometimes wears a mustache).And it's a life nobody would like to live.Happiness seems to elude him ,his marriage is already on the rocks when the film begins (" a plumber makes more money than both of us ,a cop and a bilingual secretary" says his wife (Jane Alexander));his nights are a very sad routine in which he risks his neck at every corner of the street ;he wants to study law and to get back to college but his job leaves him no time and no energy and he soon gives up.The documentary side and Fleischer's feeling for economy and sparseness precludes all forms of conventional sentimentality : it's sometimes so hard and the characters seem so resigned to their fate that the scene when Jane Alexander bursts into tears near the elevator seems almost like an anomaly;so does Scott's fit of rage when he learns that the owner charges 50 dollars a head for a bed in a slum.The title hints at the Roman Empire when Keach explains to Scott that they are like them,men who are here to protect ,to mount guard and to get a bullet in their hide so the others can go on;and he adds "and it worked...at least for a time in the Empire".SPOILERS There is at least a moment which will haunt you long after watching "the new centurions" :after a phone call to his former colleague,trying to sound casual ,Scott takes his gun and ...his life. You often wonder why ,when a person you know commit suicide ;Fleischer gives no explanation.The old cop seemed happy ,fishing and enjoying life with his grandsons.