Fantastic!

A brilliant film that helped define a genre

It is not only a funny movie, but it allows a great amount of joy for anyone who watches it.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

This show was hit and miss as far as I am concerned.Some episodes were good,some were not-so-good,and several are howlers with weak plots,improbable situations,and flat acting. As far as this show being fantastic or one of the best,I just don't see it. On the bright side,there are a lot of cool guest stars. Overall it is mediocre.You've seen better.

In watching most anthology series; no matter how broad in the subjects covered, you eventually get a feel for the sentiments of the series' producers. They're happy or hard. They like classically structured drama or flashy twists of irony. They're hopeful or cynical... especially when it comes to stories about the police and criminals. What's oddest about "Police Story" for me is that I expected a more clear cut pro law enforcement party line from Joseph Wambaugh, in the mode of Jack Webb and "Dragnet." Instead, episodes feature bad men who are good at the law and good men who are useless, as well as by the book heroes and delusional would be saviors. Few episodes give much in terms of comforting closure about the problems faced by a 1970s America in metropolitan decline.It might be as simple as, Jack Webb was an unapologetic fanboy when it came to the law and those "on the job," while Wambaugh was a retired LAPD officer with a deeper grasp of the complexity of the real work. It's hard to imagine such a morally ambiguous look at police as people being aired on US television today. This week our star is a good person who's going to fail, next week our hero will hit a suspect or his own wife. No back story to soften the impact, no follow up to reassure us of kismet, just a close up at an ugly period in our shared past.

If you read any Wambaugh novels, both fiction and nonfiction, you can really appreciate the skill, care and intelligence put into this rather short lived TV series.The stories had a feel of reality that probably reflected Wambaugh's experience; but, also shows his knack for capturing the real nature of police work. And to put celebrities in the leading roles of law enforcement had to be one the best, funniest, more sophisticated inside jokes that ever got on the little screen.If you ever have a chance to see any of these shows on the re-run channels, take a few minutes to enjoy them. You will be entertained and satisfied, really!

Real cops depicted as real people and a great mix of humor, drama and reality. The show attracted the cream of Hollywood for their episodes and several stars depicted several different characters. You just wanted to hang out with detectives Bert and Tony (Don Meredith and Tony LoBianco), applaud the grit of David Birney in "Captain Hook" and the true love displayed by Kim Darby in the same episode. You laugh at Monster Manor as cops enjoy pre-AIDS America and salute Claude Akins as a veteran cop with a practical touch. You feel "Wolf's" pain and follow the new deputy chief through his promotion process. I teach cops and police cadets and I would pay a lot for this great series, especially a DVD boxed set with some commentaries. After all, if they can do a boxed set of "Sledge Hammer" and "Reno 911" they ought to be able to do this landmark show. Super cool theme music, too.