TV MOVIE OF THE WEEK: COLLECTION 4

In this age of prestige television that more often than not rivals cinema, it’s hard to remember that the small screen was once regarded as the lesser of two formats. However, American networks went to considerable efforts during the 70s and 80s to bring a theatrical flair to primetime. Imprint Television has put together a box set of what was the bread and butter of genres, the police crime-drama. TV Movie of the Week: Collection 4 contains three classic titles now in full HD – Contract on Cherry Street (1977), To Kill a Cop (1978) and Cocaine and Blue Eyes (1983).

When a dedicated squad of New York detectives, led by Frank Sinatra, decide to fight the mob on their own terms, Contract on Cherry Street becomes a mess of consequences as both sides of the law descend into chaos. Shot entirely in New York City, there’s a real authenticity to the street-level action that exposes a glaring similarity between cop and criminal, who, while opposed, share a similar code when it comes to retribution. Sinatra is smooth as Inspector Frank Hovannes alongside Martin Balsam, Henry Silva (actually playing a grounded character) and Harry Guardino, who has impressively made his own hair look like a hairpiece. This is by far the pick of the set. I actually forgot a number of times that it was made for TV.

To Kill a Cop is a two-parter coming in at roughly three hours in total and stars the late Joe Don Baker as New York City’s Chief of Detectives, who is up against it with police bureaucracy and a radicalised criminal trying to inspire the ‘young blood’ to start a revolution. While it aims for a high standard, the biggest issue is that this high-stakes drama is unfocused and unbalanced. The dialogue-heavy script often slows things down to a crawl while a dated sub-plot involving a romance between a married patrol officer and his equally married female partner, played by Desi Arnaz Jr. and Christine Belford, adds very little to the emotional impact. Louis Gossett Jr. guest stars as the main antagonist, but does not get enough screen time as opposed to Baker, who is always great to watch and does much of the heavy lifting. To Kill a Cop is worth the time, but it would work a lot better as a tighter 90-minute feature.

Cocaine and Blue Eyes takes us over to the West Coast in San Francisco and stars O.J. Simpson, who is giving Phillip Marlowe vibes as private detective, Michael Brennen, in this police-adjacent mystery with echoes of The Long Goodbye. It ticks just about every box as far as the P.I. plots are concerned, with a few unexpected twists towards the end. O.J. manages to hold his own as the often-perplexed gumshoe, who has accepted a case handed to him by a dead man. Despite being a tab forgettable, there is really nothing to complain about there.

SPECIAL FEATURES

Cocaine and Blue Eyes

Bonus film: A Killing Affair (1977) (Standard-Definition)

Contract on Cherry Street

Alternate 110 Minute Version

I’m not surprised by the lack of extras, considering the relative obscurity of many TV movies from the period, but to include an additional feature and a more digestible cut of Contract on Cherry Street is a chef’s kiss, especially since it is generally considered the superior cut.

A Killing Affair (1977) is a somewhat stilted police drama starring O.J. Simpson opposite Elizabeth Montgomery as two homicide detectives who become romantically involved despite having zero chemistry. There’s a loose plot involving a psycho killer played by Dean Stockwell, but it feels incidental as our two protagonists navigate the challenges of their affair.

VIDEO AND AUDIO

Naturally, all four features, plus the bonus tile, are all presented in native 4:3 (1.33:1) aspect ratio, and they look impressive in HD. As someone who has watched countless TV movies ripped from obscure YouTube uploads, this feels like a gift from the gods. They’re pristine with nice colour and sharpness that meet the 1080p standard. English LPCM 2.0 Mono serves the dialogue-heavy narratives well and undoubtedly sounds a lot better than being limited to a single speaker on a wood panel TV from ‘back in the day’.

Imprint Television has tapped into a well of TV movies that would have likely remained on forgotten video tapes, and with movie HD treatment on the way from the small screen sub-label, I’m excited to see what else they’ll deliver.

TV MOVIE OF THE WEEK COLLECTION 4
(1977-83, director: Various)

★★★½

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