NYPD Blue - Season 1
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Movie Reviews of NYPD Blue - Season 1
Movie Review: First season was the best and the most unique
Summary: 5 Stars
Although it seems tame compared to the show's currently on television (most notably "The Shield"), "NYPD Blue" was groundbreaking back when it premiered in 1993. It was one of the first television shows to truly push the envelope, featuring nudity, violence, and language that you thought you'd never hear on network television at the time. So much so, that it wasn't even broadcast on the ABC affiliate in Dallas during that first season.
The first season contains some quality television moments. I found the pilot disappointing - it's dull prime time fare meant primarily to shock the viewer. However, the second episode will draw you in. Sipowicz, after being shot by a mobster, lies in the hospital while his partner, Detective John Kelly (David Caruso) and other precinct characters, seek revenge. The internal affairs stuff becomes more relevant, as does Sipowicz's nasty drinking habit, his disastrous personal life and his racist tendencies. Kelly is more of a kinder cop, standing behind his partner even with his bad habits, and Caruso plays it with such debonair coolness in contrast to Franz's gruff Sipowicz that he attracted movie offers quickly and left after the first four episodes of the second season. Unfortunately, people remember more about how Caruso's career went downhill after he left the show than just how good he was at playing Kelly.
Remember that besides the shock value, season one of NYPD Blue is depicting a pre-Giuliani New York City - one in which people carry spare watches and extra cash so that when they inevitably get mugged they have something to give the robber and don't get pistol whipped. This inevitable sense of victimhood is personified in "4B" (David Schwimmer), a guy who is mugged in the laundry room of his own apartment building, starts carrying a gun, and is eventually killed while trying to defend himself against a subsequent attack. There's also the budding "Beauty and the Beast" romance between Sipowicz and ADA Sylvia Costas which begins Sipowicz' transformation into a good and admirable person. Then there is the season-long epic of officer Janice Licalsi (Amy Brenneman) who kills a mobster who in turn wanted her to kill John Kelly and was threatening to reveal her late father's corrupt past as a police officer as leverage. Licalsi has apparently gotten away with a crime that seems somewhat justifiable, but her conscience just won't let the deed rest.
Overall, I would say that this was one of the better seasons of NYPD Blue. The characters were much more interesting than they were in later seasons and the stories were pretty good, although I was somewhat bored by the internal affairs material. The season holds up over time, but the shock value really doesn't, and in some cases actually does damage to character development. For example, there is really no reason for that last scene of the last episode of the season between John Kelly and Robin, the widow of John's rich friend who has recently died of cancer. In fact, subtract the shock value, and it makes Kelly look like a real jerk - Licalsi is facing prison for saving John's life and his first act after her confession and arrest is to be with another woman? In spite of it all, I would still recommend the DVD set since this first season really is very unique among the twelve season run and is a must for any true fan of the show.
Movie Review: Behind The Blue Wall
Summary: 5 Stars
With the fact that the show has been on for ten seasons and the proliferation of gritty and realistic programming now on TV (especially on HBO which has no restrictions), one can forget the power and shock of NYPD Blue when it premiered in 1993. David Bochco insisted that ABC allow him to use minor profanities and brief nudity to create a more realistic portrayal of the lives of New York City cops. While several stations balked at the show and refused to carry it, the show was an instant success. What really made the show so interesting was not the language or nudity, but the well written shows and first rate acting. Bochco veteran Dennis Franz plays alcoholic detective Andy Sipowicz, who was only supposed to be in the first episode, whose character is gunned down and nearly dies. Mr. Franz is superb as the volcanic Sipowicz and was rewarded with the first of his four Best Actor Emmys for the season, but the real star of the season is David Caruso. Mr. Caruso is simply magnetic as Sipowicz's partner John Kelly. Whereas Sipowicz is a hot head, Kelly exudes cool and calm. He is passionate about what he does, but his anger boils beneath the surface where Sipowicz's explodes. It is this dynamic between the two that makes the pairing work as one of the best in TV cop show history. Other cast members include Sherry Stringfield as Assistant D.A. Laura Michaels who is also Kelly's ex-wife, Amy Brenneman as Janice Licalsi who is a police desk officer that is tangled up with the mob and carrying on an affair with Kelly, James McDaniel as Lt. Arthur Fancy who heads the department and is black. Sipowicz is also a racist which causes much tension between him and Fancy. Nicholas Turturro is Dt. James Martinez who is a new detective who struggles for acceptance on the job. Future series regulars, Gordon Clapp as Greg Medavoy, Sharon Lawrence as Assistant D.A. Sylvia Costas and Gail O'Grady as receptionist Donna Abandando all appear as recurring characters before all were made full time cast members in the season two. Actors like David Schwimmer, Michael Rappaport, Wendie Malik, Daniel Benzali, John Wesley Shipp and Bradley Whitford have guest roles. Season one of the show almost seems like a separate show all together due to the massive cast changes that occurred after the season. Mr. Caruso believed all the hype about him and made the mistake many actors who achieve success on a TV show, that they can become movie stars. Mr. Caruso left the show after four brief appearances in season two and never achieved the stardom that he seemed slated for. Sherry Stringfield left the show after the season to go to another show that would be even more popular, ER and Amy Brenneman also left the cast. For the one season that he was on the show though, Mr. Caruso created an indelible image and the show would continue on through the rest of the decade as one the most popular and well made shows on television.Movie Review: Great
Summary: 5 Stars
Oh, dear, this is an addictive series. 6 episodes in 4 days. Get a life, Gaz. I'd already seen the whole series twice when it was originally run, and thought it so good that I sat down to write the makers a congratulatory letter but I didn't know who to send it to. The problem for the producers was that they told the story of the precinct house so well, and ended it on such a perfect note, that there wasn't really any point in continuing with it. They'd done it, and should have left it as a one off masterpiece. The next series lacked Caruso, the long running corruption saga and the strong writing. I don't know if some writers moved on, but the humour of the show, similar to 'Hill Street Blues', seemed to lessen dramatically. Formula set in, the usual interrogation scenes, and also a peculiar political correctness. I don't know whether that's because of all the rules in America to do with office politics, no racism, sexism etc, but everyone in the squad room seemed to talk in this odd "I-must-check-every-word-for-respect" stilted speak. Very odd and uncomfortable. I stopped watching and the series eventually vanished for two years before returning at an after midnight slot. Caruso went on to star in 'Micheal Hayes' which was an interesting attempt to tackle politics with intelligence, but was slow starting and often incomprehensible to the layman. Sadly, he now stars in 'CSI: Miami', a truly dreadful, meretricious waste of time in which he appears to be in a straightjacket with nothing much to do. Franz appears to have stayed with the show, but the tragedies in his life seem to have gotten into the realms of the ridiculous. If they haven't already, they should cut his character a break. Nearly everytime an actor wants out, the producers kill their character. Is this realistic?Before all that, though, was this classic first series which is well worth investing in. I have problems with some of it. Halfway through, police brutality was introduced, and the constant beating up of suspects, which the series appeared to condone, quickly became repellent. I note that real NY cops didn't get away with this conduct in one particularly notorious case. Also, the lead characters were never on the take or anything. Real good guys, up to a point. Never the less, there are too many other virtues and great scenes to mention.
Movie Review: Don't Forget The Greatness That This Was...
Summary: 5 Stars
For years my Tuesday nights revolved around this show. Then, sometime around the time they got yet another pair of gorgeous, yet totally colorless, female detectives, and yet another "Loo" and the show became totally a police procedual (I have to think budgetary cuts had to make dispensible anything outside the station house and exteriors filmed on an already established studio backlot), I gave up on it, and switched to the now supremely edgier and better written (and acted and directed) The Shield. That said, there were those years were the cooler talk at my place of work revolved around NYPD Blue, and it was never better than in its first, groundbreaking season. Forget the hype about the nudity and language: what made this show so great was its portrayal of complicated, fallible people--truth be told, men--doing a immensely difficult job. Kelly and Sipowicz were such compelling figures because they were basically decent men in a world where decency didn't necessarily solve the cases they had to deal with. Who could forget Kelly telling then young detective Martinez how far he would violate a suspect's rights to get a confession. It was brilliant drama, as we find ourselves confronting our own ambivilence about civil rights when they come to criminals. And who could forget that moment when a grieving couple whose son has been murdered look at a pigeon on a rooftop and speak of how that's the little boy's spirit come back to them. And Andy Sipowicz--angry, drunken, violent, racist Andy--saying that he could see the light around the pigeon and yes, it had to be the boy come back. Television didn't, and doesn't, get better than this. We all know that NYPD Blue should have ended years before it did (although that would have denied us the opportunity to see a great actor like Dennis Franz at work), but for this first season, and at least two more seasons, there was no better acted, written, directed drama on television. This is a box set worth having.Movie Review: Paving The Way to Greatness
Summary: 5 Stars
When Boccho introduced "Hill Street Blues" to TV audiences, I thought that nothing could surpass the brilliance of that show. I must say that even with the creation of NYPD Blue, nothing has in my mind. However, this does not mean that Blue is not as compelling as Hill Street in its storytelling, cinematography, ensemble acting, brilliant writing and plot characterization. The core of the show rests in the way cases are intertwined with the personalities of the characters. What facinates me is the varied and complex range of each character, especially Andy Sipowitz. He above all the other characters personafies the struggle of finding ones true self through the personal demons within. With that said you can't help but love the guy because through the rough and tough surface appearance, he is a dedicated cop and a good person that can see the best in others more readily than he can see in himself.The first two seasons are classic in the way the characters are brought to life so that each is identifiable to the audience in such a way that you feel their expierence personally. Add to this the superb storytelling and camera work and you have TV worth watching which says a lot considering there is very little to see these days. Although recent seasons are not as compelling as the first two (what shows are?), I still find myself glued to channel seven (NY) partly based on those first two seasons.
Accordingly, it is my feeling that season one and two are a must for anyone who appreciates great acting, brilliant writing, and exceptional storytelling. These are the ingredients that make for excellent TV