Burt Reynolds was a sly guy. This WITH a hairpiece since the late 70's. But he has had a massive career, and a good one too. This movie was directed by him as well.
The story is of Sharky, a tough urban cop who when a drug bust goes bad, he naturally decides to go to a less harsher department...uh...vice. Drugs and prostitution. There he finds a motley crew of has-been cops whose not there by choice. Or they're just weirdos. Check out this list of absolute badasses. Charles Durning, Brian Keith, Bernie Casey, Richard Libertini...it's the who's who of character actors who play tough guys or cops.
His first, and only case is to bust a prostitution and drug ring. He stakes out Dominoe, a beautiful dancer/hooker played by Rachel Ward who, by association has stumbled on a bigger problem...a guy who has been killing his hookers. The brutal killer is played by an Easter Island headed Victor Silva (I've actually met this dude, and he is nicest guy ever). He plays the psychotic heavy muscle for mob boss Victor (Vittorio Gassman).
Sharky naturally falls for her. A painfully abused sexy woman and sets out to protect her.
The movie is dark and ugly. It sweats under the Atlanta landscape. Sharky is no good-guy but he cracks-wise. I'd be surprised if Shane Black didn't reference this movie for cops bantering weird shit in the midst of stress. It is actually a really funny movie. And according to Reynolds himself...an answer to Clint Eastwood's "Dirty Harry."
I think what I loved most about this movie is its ability NOT to take itself seriously. The cops are bigoted and war-worn. The prostitutes are characters in their own world and feel REALLY authentic (gotta wonder) and the plot, while goofy...does keep the movie rolling pretty fast. It's also cool to see the early 80's cop melodrama which...6 years later it would explode.
Based on a novel by William Diehl, I had a great time watching this movie.
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