NJC+ Film Club: The Laughing Policeman (1973)
70s Crime, 70s San Francisco, and a Car Chase. What More Could You Ask for?
Quick! Name a great crime movie from the 1970s. set in San Francisco, with a great car chase!
For most, the films that come to mind are of course, Dirty Harry (1971) or Bullitt (1968), as well they should. They are classics of the genre, and they have some good car chases.
However, most people today may not be aware of another great early 70s crime film set in San Francisco, also with a great car chase, and also filmed on mostly location. That would be 1973s “The Laughing Policeman” starring Walter Matthau as an SFPD cop investigating a mass shooting on a Muni bus, and the ensuring investigation that takes Walter Matthau and his partner, played by Bruce Dern, on an investigation that takes them all over town. It has always been a favorite of mine but when I went to write this post, I ended up on a detective story of my own - trying to find a copy to watch!
That’s because the last time I saw this movie was on DVD, and while I can’t “prove” it, it was likely a rental at the old Le Video on 9th (a former video store that’s now a Green Apple Books).
When I went to find the movie on one of the many streaming services available, I realized quickly that none had it on any available streaming service. This explains why many people never heard of this film - you can’t watch it most places people get their movies from.
I won’t go into a spirally rant about how foolish it is that we have the technical means to display literally any move or tv show ever made, and yet, we can’t because of (insert too many reasons, here).
Anyway, back to the movie, which got a nice review from Roger Ebert back when it was released. You can also watch a trailer for the movie here.
This is one of my favorites because it really shows off 1970s San Francisco, and the changes coming to the city, particularly as you follow the characters through downtown and you see the Financial District we know today, being built.
Overall, the film really shows of Real San Francisco and it gets bonus points for having Walter Matthau’s character live in Sherwood Forest, aka a part of town most people don’t know about, even if they live in San Francisco (ha ha).
I remember this standing out the first time I saw it - upon rewatching I was wondering if Matthau’s house was still there. As it turned out, getting there was easier than I thought, as the 43 bus has a stop than drops you off at Bengal Street (which is just a staircase with a nice view)
From there it’s a short walk in one of the quietest parts of town to Robinhood Drive, where his house remains, albeit with a few modifications. However, the house next door has been replaced with an 80s-esque Epic Estate:
It made for a nice detour, anyway. Plus you really have to appreciate just how quiet a good portion of the city is during the day, interrupted only by people doing remodels of their houses, or a garbage truck.
As stated, this is clearly an Actually Filmed in SF film, which is always nice , especially when you have a good City car chase.
The plot itself is actually interesting and even 50+ years later, mostly ages well, if some of the language and terminology don’t. But all is forgiven when we see La Palma make an appearance:
And here’s Walter Matthau chasing the bad guys in North Beach. Note all the onlookers clearly watching the film being made:
One thing that also really hits you in 2024, looking back at 1973 is just how awful having the Central Freeway along the waterfront really was. If you ever need to see a good example of bad urban planning, watching the car chase under the Central Freeway reminds you of just how crappy this thing was, and how we were lucky to get rid of it after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. That said, without it we might not have had this scene at “The Ramrod”:
Still, when you watch this now, it is hard for me to believe this thing was real, and I used to drive on this on a regular basis….
Overall this is a good movie to see if you can find it. There’s been some online discussions lately about the benefits of buying physical media, and in an era when an accountant can take away something you paid for, all to service a tax break, it’s one worth considering as you find things you like online or off.
As always, please let me know what you liked about this movie if you’ve seen it, or if you have other set in SF movies you’d like to see discussed, please let me know.
PS: Apologies for taking way too long to post this - one disadvantage of working for yourself is that you have no one to talk to or bounce ideas off of, or have someone just say “post the stupid article and stop worrying about it.”
In my case, in an effort to avoid mistakes I made with past publications, I started to obsess about every little detail, wanting to double check everything, etc. which led to me not posting anything, out of some generic “fear” that if something wasn’t perfect, chaos would ensue. (Yes, I realize this is stupid thinking, and yes I’m dealing with it.).
Anyway, I want this newsletter/blog/substack/etc. to be good, but part of that has to be actually putting something out vs. just thinking about it, so suffice to say, I have had a realignment of sorts and now will publish more regularly. Thanks for your patience!
I painted that house on Robinhood Dr. and 4 others on the same block about 40 years ago.