Busting Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.0

Busting Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf October 4, 2015

In one of his first forays into feature filmmaking, writer/director Peter Hyams (“Outland,” “Capricorn One,” “2010”) takes the hard-charging heroism of the supercop subgenre and dips it in boiling acid for 1974’s “Busting.” While not the first force of cynicism concerning the futility of police work to emerge from Hollywood, it’s one of the most pronounced, containing an almost punishing level of bitterness to accompany an organized crime takedown plot. Hyams keeps the material on edge, managing the roller coaster ride of frustration that informs nearly every scene, creating a few surges in straightforward action to bait the viewer into a feeling of progress before lowering the hammer once again. “Busting” is raw and inventive, but a little of the picture goes a long way, especially with Elliott Gould and Robert Blake in the lead roles, delivering polar opposite performances that often distract from the theme at hand. It’s a powerful film, but it only achieves greatness in periodic bursts.

Vice cops working the streets of Los Angeles, Detective Keneely (Elliott Gould) and Detective Farrel (Robert Blake) are committed to the mission of justice, but find their duty to arrest bad guys disrupted by corrupt colleagues and a flawed system. Busting prostitutes and drug dealers, Keneely and Farrel find that most criminal connections lead to Carl Rizzo (Allen Garfield), a kingpin well protected by his enforcers and cops on the take. Figuring out a way to nail Rizzo for his multitude of crimes, the cops sink deeper into desperation, finding their effort falling apart while the bad guys get away with everything.

“Busting” doesn’t define a clear narrative until the midway mark, content to open the feature with a series of busts that tease future connections and provide an understanding of police temperament when it comes to everyday crimes. The first offense is the most amusing, watching Keneely and Farrel apply pressure on a family dentist who uses his office to sleep with prostitute Jackie (Cornelia Sharpe), who slips in as a patient and quickly gets down to business once safely behind closed doors. Hyams handles the encounter with a sense of humor, while the cops unleash their heavily rehearsed patter to disorientate the doctor, spinning him with threats and jokes as they persuade him to cooperate with the case. Keneely and Farrel eventually do visit Jackie at her place of business (her apartment) to secure an arrest, but time on the job also requires trips to a gay bar and a massage parlor hidden in the back of an adult theater.

Each step brings them closer to Rizzo, but Hyams also establishes personality along the way, getting to know how Kneeley and Farrel handle the stress of their duty. Mostly, they act out with humor, taking on the presence of a well-oiled comedy team, more invested in their banter than any sort of legality surround their arrests. “Busting” is truly a character piece, spending more time with the men on the job than doing the job, finding Farrel reserved and supportive while Keneely is the spokesperson, always out front to sweet talk his way in and out of any situation. In many ways, Blake and Gould are miscast, failing to spark any chemistry as longtime partners, and their comedic speeds don’t provide the yin-yang rhythm Hyams is hunting for. Blake is practically asleep during the picture, letting Gould take the lead with his enormous mustache, with the famed star of the 1970s difficult to accept as a leathered L.A. cop. “Busting” would be far more successful with actors who actually seem like they enjoy each other’s company, finding the leading men slapped together like a pair of groomsmen who just met before their best friend’s wedding.

Hyams juices up “Busting” with terrific cinematography that’s filled with speed and the flavors of Los Angeles. Violence is fairly heavy as well, playing out a handful of shootouts with civilian casualty and credible threat to the dented cops, who, in a memorable sequence, take on enforcers inside a street market during business hours, blasting away while surrounded by a horrified public. While Hyams in interested in sustaining a degree of smart aleck humor with the jaded detectives, “Busting” eventually sobers up in a major way, studying the life and fight draining out of Kneeley and Farrel as they match Rizzo’s retaliations with their own version of escalation. A compelling arc of melancholy is formed once the boys realize they are alone in their pursuit of justice.

Busting Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation carries "Busting" with its intended raw visual energy. Grain is managed to filmic standards, with passable detail coming through gauzy cinematography, permitting viewers to study nuanced facial reactions and street signage, while public shootouts are also open for inspection. Colors are secure with an era-specific illness (there's lots of heavy red lighting in this movie), registering as intended on costumes and urban sprawl. Delineation is comfortable with evening adventures, rubbing up against cinematographic limitations. Source shows some signs of age, but remains free of overt damage.

Busting Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix faces a murkiness inherent to films of the era, offering a streetwise listening experience that doesn't favor dialogue exchanges. Dramatics are passably intelligible, with more heated encounters obviously favored, pushing through the blend of elements. Scoring is also spongier, less about authority and more about supporting the intensity of chases and shootouts. Atmospherics are clouded but identifiable. Hiss is present throughout the track, and there's a stretch of damage around the 24:00 mark.

Busting Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary #1 features writer/director Peter Hyams.

• Commentary #2 is a select-scene conversation with Elliott Gould.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (2:45, HD) is included.

Busting Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Busting" has some potent ideas on corruption, greeting the world of police with mounting pessimism, taking the picture to unexpected areas of resignation that are communicated chillingly. Hyams works up a sweat to give the feature a rumbling identity, making an exciting cop film, but one with a painful awareness of the fraud. It leads to an incredible final moment in the movie, watching Hyams dare to end the effort on a downbeat note of loss. It's brave. The helmer would go on to play with the supercop formula a few more times in his unsteady career (1986's "Running Scared" being his most successful experiment), but "Busting" has a feral nature that's nearly impossible to dismiss, keeping in step with its brethren as guns are drawn and suspects are shamed before transforming into story of moral surrender that breaks it away from the routine. It's a sharp picture deceptively staged as a meandering day in the life of two weary cops.