Homicide: The Movie

I became a fan of the TV series `Homicide: Life on the Street' late in the show's run, but became a fan very quickly. It was a cop show unlike any other: visually different in its use of hand-held cameras, taking the viewer everywhere, with its multiethnic and mutiracial cast and their varying and fascinating personalities, and that it covered all of the good and bad of a police department, including the corruption and personality clashes that bubble up to the surface.

Homicide: The Movie, the reunion follow-up to the series, is as good as a made-for-television film can be. After Lt. Giardello (Yaphet Kotto), now a candidate for mayor of Baltimore, is shot, the series' cast members are back to help find the killer. In addition, the cast members who left the force and those who died, also manage to have their place in the film. The intensity and fire that marked the series return, and the script bristles with the same fire that marked the series. All in all, a terrific TV movie.

Vote: 9

In all truth, this really isn't a "movie" so much as an extended final episode; by this I mean that, had you NOT followed the TV series (Homicide: Life On The Street) I suspect that you would have a hard time following this made-for-tv movie. Having said that, "Homicide: The Movie" is still a great watch. I think it says a lot about a television production that EVERY single cast member would return, many after years of absence, to once again portray their characters and bring closure to an incredible program. The movie brings out that sense of "family", not only amongst the characters, but amongst the actors, as well. It's all very bitter-sweet knowing that this will be the LAST time we will see them all together again under the title of HOMICIDE. Story-wise, I found this film somewhat lacking. Giardello's mayoral candidacy seems particularly contrived, and I felt his shooting could've been dealt with within the parameters of his regular position, as Leiutenant. Also, Det. Bayliss's extreme plot twist, which was left hanging at series end, is finally resolved, but I, for one, NEVER felt that it needed to be; I enjoyed being left with a mystery (let us recall that the very first episode's first case also went unsolved for the entire series run!). As a DEVOTED fan of the TV series I can love this movie, and the fact that it even got made after H:LOTS had been canceled, but I would not recommend it to anyone who hasn't had the slightest exposure to the series. Now, if they'd just release it on DVD...

Out on the campaign trail for Mayor, Giardello gets shot twice and taken to hospital. His shooting could be enemies from his previous post or could be drug related as he pledged to legalise drugs to take it off the streets. The shooting brings the homicide detectives out in force – both present and past to try and piece together the clues and find out who it was and why.

Thanks to the UK's Channel 4's policy of not knowing a good thing when they've bought the rights to it, I have not seen the last series of H:LOTS, simply because they decided that it wasn't getting enough viewers and dropped it. So I don't know how directly this follows on from the TV series in terms of time but I know that it does tie in quite well and close some open questions. The plot is quite simple and lacks the class of the tv series but still works well for what it has to do. Some of the plot is a jump too far but it still works on the whole. The side issues are as interesting as the main plot and the close of the film is actually a lot more moving than I expected it to be.

The main problem the film has is that `every detective is back'. The result of this is that fans get to see characters they haven't seen for years, but the downside is that they are mostly just clutter – wheeled in to say a few lines and then disappear. The film is at it's strongest when it focuses on good subplots with the strongest characters – hence it is at it's best when Pembleton and Bayliss are the focus. It is still good to see all the faces but at times you wonder why they bothered and why they didn't sacrifice some characters to make for a tighter narrative.

The cast all do well, with Braugher and Secor standing out due to the amount of time and material the film allows them to have. The cameos (although a lot of the cast could be called cameos) are mixed. Priestley and Begley Jnr are a bit of a waste of space but Oz's Walker gives a delicate performance and shows his skill in this media yet again.

Overall I had no great hopes for this film as it is basically a TVM, but I did enjoy it more than I thought. The revolving door of old characters does drag a little at times but the film works and the focus on a group of main characters (Pembleton and Bayliss in particular) works to it's strength and produces a film that, while not comparable to the series in terms of quality, will satisfy many of it's fans.

This fittingly idiosyncratic ending to the Homicide saga is the most densely interwoven fusion of continuity and narrative I've ever seen. Deeply rewarding for fans of the series and a solid final point for hours of gritty 90's storytelling mixed with strange contemporary alt rock songs (and whacky dated music video editing to match). Giancarlo Esposito features in the two best sequences ever put to screen: a manic dream sequence with a gleefully cartoonish Yaphet Kotto and a screeching guitar montage where he puts the boot into various people for no reason whilst Reed Diamond indifferently scoffs pizza. All series should end this way.

"Homicide: The Movie" is a TV flick which continues the defunct TV series and, given its less than sterling reviews, probably concludes it as well. The film, which tells of the investigation of a shooting of a Baltimore mayoral candidate who also heads the homicide squad (Kotto), pulls together most of the cast of the successful 1993-1999 TV series with reprises from many including cameos from the dead characters. "Homicide: The Movie" requires such a familiarity with the TV series for a complete understanding of the characters' background and history that familiarity with the series is almost a prerequisite for the film. Furthermore, as a stand alone piece, the film just isn't that good. "Homicide:The Movie" will play best as a farewell to loyal viewers of "Homicide:Life in the Streets". (B-)