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Crime Story (Pilot Episode)

Crime Story (Pilot Episode)

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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Television At It's Best
Review: As with the other folks above, I remember watching Crime Story each week during it's two years on the air. It made TV bearable for a little while; remember, this show came in the days of such "classics" as Who's the Boss and The A-Team. The last couple of episodes of season one blew me away; a story arc that lasted a season with all the loose ends being tied up in an finale that was definitely unconventional.

I own the boxed VHS set from Starmaker. Although it is nice to have the entire run in one collection, the picture quality leaves something to be desired. Also, it is nearing the end of it's shelf life (the average for VHS is about 15 years) so a DVD set would be very welcome.

Thanks to Anchor Bay for taking the time to put this gem back on the market and here's hoping they release the rest of the series.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Television At It's Best
Review: As with the other folks above, I remember watching Crime Story each week during it's two years on the air. It made TV bearable for a little while; remember, this show came in the days of such "classics" as Who's the Boss and The A-Team. The last couple of episodes of season one blew me away; a story arc that lasted a season with all the loose ends being tied up in an finale that was definitely unconventional.

I own the boxed VHS set from Starmaker. Although it is nice to have the entire run in one collection, the picture quality leaves something to be desired. Also, it is nearing the end of it's shelf life (the average for VHS is about 15 years) so a DVD set would be very welcome.

Thanks to Anchor Bay for taking the time to put this gem back on the market and here's hoping they release the rest of the series.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: gritty Ellroy-esque crime show
Review: Crime Story is a a lean, mean cop show drama that features politically incorrect police officers battling it out with nasty criminals.

It's a testimony to Michael Mann's reputation at the time that Crime Story was even greenlighted. NBC would have never gone for the casting of Dennis Farina, with his pockmarked face and lack of acting experience, had Mann been a neophyte producer with no proven track record. The choice of cult film director Abel Ferrara (pre-Bad Lieutenant) must have also freaked out network execs. His previous films included a deranged psycho gruesomely killing people with a power tool and a rape survivor viciously killing the men who attacked her with a .45 pistol.

And yet, the final product proves that Mann's instincts were right on the money. Farina delivers the hard-boiled dialogue with the perfect amount of intensity (at one point Farina says menacingly to one goon, "you hurt anybody else, when this is all over I'm gonna find what you love the most and I'm gonna kill it. Your mother, your father, your dog. Don't matter what it is -- it's dead."). You can see it in his eyes and the way he barks out orders that this a no-nonsense guy who isn't going to let anything get in the way of his job.

Ferrara directs with the same proficient skill of crime auteur, Don Siegel. Crime Story depicts a harsh world where life is cheap and characters will do anything -- even if it means bending or breaking the law -- to achieve their goals.

One of the most striking aspects about Crime Story is that it feels like it was ripped right from the pages of a James Ellroy novel. It is even more surprising that this show was done before Ellroy had written his famous L.A. Quartet of books that features L.A. Confidential, which Crime Story most closely resembles. The author claims that he hadn't seen the show until after he wrote these novels but he does admit to being a fan since then. This, of course, begs the question, when is someone going to reunite Farina and Ferrara to do a proper Ellroy adaptation?

The DVD disappoints in the extras department. No audio commentaries from Ferrara or Mann (both of whom have done them before), or even the show's creator, Chuck Adamson. A retrospective featurette would have been nice but instead we are left with nothing.

If you are willing to overlook the appalling lack of extras and are a fan of Michael Mann or James Ellroy's fiction then this is definitely worth checking out. Hopefully, the folks at Anchor Bay will redeem themselves with the first season of Crime Story that their website says is due out in July of this year with the second season coming out in December.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Before the Soprano's there was...CRIME STORY!!!
Review: Crime Story. It was Miami Vice but for Italians. If you don't know what I'm saying then forgedboudit!!! The only reason the Soprano's is good is because Crime Story paved the way. Every Italian household should have a poster of Crime Story next to their framed pictures of the Pope and Elvis Presley.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Set My Series Free!!!!!!
Review: I don't know what gets into the studios sometimes. This was one of my favorite series at the time I would not miss a week night that it was on. Great characters, lots of drama, supense, and tough guys from back in the day. Cooool hair & Cool Cars. Ray Luca, cold as Ice, Paulie, ruthless, stupid and funny, All the cops old skool cool and hard core. I was sad to see this go but a note to the studios who can make it live again: Set it free and I will buy it!!!! The pilot is not enough!!!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: wanted more luca
Review: I enjoyed this dvd a great deal. The only problem was I wanted to see more of luca. He is on reruns that remind me of what fun it would be to see them on dvd too.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Awsome TV series
Review: I love Crime Story. I grew up watching it as a kid and I'am glad I finally found it at Amazon. This pilot movie rock and rolls. Really gets you in the mood to watch the series coming out November 4, 2003.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Awsome TV series
Review: I love Crime Story. I grew up watching it as a kid and I'am glad I finally found it at Amazon. This pilot movie rock and rolls. Really gets you in the mood to watch the series coming out November 4, 2003.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: As Good As TV Gets
Review: It only took a couple of seconds to know that this was going to be great. By the opening credits, I was hooked by the characters, the action, and the style. (Speaking of the credits, it's too bad that the wonderful montage of stock footage from Chicago intercut with shots from the series was replaced with Torello and company "in formation.") It leaves Miami Vice in the dust. Allow me to add my voice to those above in urging whoever owns the rights to this gem to get both seasons on DVD as soon as possible. It's a keeper.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: As Good As TV Gets
Review: It only took a couple of seconds to know that this was going to be great. By the opening credits, I was hooked by the characters, the action, and the style. (Speaking of the credits, it's too bad that the wonderful montage of stock footage from Chicago intercut with shots from the series was replaced with Torello and company "in formation.") It leaves Miami Vice in the dust. Allow me to add my voice to those above in urging whoever owns the rights to this gem to get both seasons on DVD as soon as possible. It's a keeper.


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