Code of Silence (1985)

User Rating:

5.6/10   

Director:

Andrew Davis

Writers:

Michael Butler (story) &
Dennis Shryack (story) ...

Release Date:

3 May 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama

Tagline:

Eddie Cusack's a good cop having a very bad day.

Plot:

A Chicago cop is caught in a middle of a gang war while his own comrades shun him because he wants to take an irresponsible cop down.

Plot Keywords:

Police | Drugs | El Train | Police Code Of Silence | Limousine

Cast

Chuck Norris	...	Eddie Cusack
Henry Silva	...	Luis Comacho
Bert Remsen	...	Commander Kates
Mike Genovese	...	Tony Luna
Nathan Davis	...	Felix Scalese
Ralph Foody	...	Cragie
Allen Hamilton	...	Pirelli
Ron Henriquez	...	Victor Comacho
Joe Guzaldo	...	Nick Kopalas (as Joseph Guzaldo)
Molly Hagan	...	Diana Luna
Ron Dean	...	Brennan
Wilbert Bradley	...	Spider
Dennis Farina	...	Dorato
Gene Barge	...	Music
Mario Nieves	...	Pompas

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Astrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | USA:R (certificate #27615) | Singapore:NC-16 | Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | West Germany:18

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Trivia:

This is the first movie where Ron Dean and Joseph F. Kosala, whose play Brennan and Kobas, played together. Later they met again in Above the Law (1988) and The Fugitive (1993).

Goofs:

Continuity: In the initial shoot-out, a bad-guy is shot and falls off a make-shift bridge. He very clearly lands on his back. In the next shot, we see him lying dead, face-down.

Quotes:

[Camacho and Cusack run into each other in a public building]
Luis Comacho: One day, I would like to give you a gift of a Columbian neck-tie.
[Camacho's underlings laugh]
Luis Camacho: It's very special. You slit the throat, pull out the tongue and on you, (Camacho laughs), it would look beautiful.
Cusack: [smirking] Why don't you give it to me right now?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Living on Tokyo Time (1987)

Why don't you give it to me right now...?

Chuck's best film. That may not say too much, but come ON.

The action actually took a back seat to the plot about the alcoholic/burnt out veteran whom no one was willing to see the truth about. Great drama involving the rookie who wants to do the right thing and Chuck's reality check.

The warring drug gangs were full of clichés even if it was done well. A bit of racial profiling too. Colombians killing everybody even closely related to their nemesis. And the Italian gang just being unable to leave well enough alone. The actors here (especially Henry Silva) did a great job with the material.

A decent slam-banger with a lot of good scenes in it. And for once, Chuck's somnambulist acting was a plus. Clint was the original choice here. It's easy to imagine him in the role too. But then, Chuck always was the second string Clint.