The Laughing Policeman
The Laughing Policeman

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- 63/100 based on 3,087 votes

A San Francisco city bus, with eight passengers and the driver, pulls out of a downtown bus station and moves through the city stopping once for a new passenger. The passenger, unseen above the chest, walks to the back of the bus pulls the pieces of a sub-machine gun from a tote bag, assembles them, and massacres the eight passenger and the driver. The bus crashes and the killer walks away. Driving onto the scene are homicide detectives Jake Martin (Walter Matthau), Leo Larse... (Full plot summary below)

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Actors in The Laughing Policeman:

Walter Matthau
Bruce Dern
Louis Gossett Jr.
Albert Paulsen
Anthony Zerbe
Val Avery

Full Plot Details

A San Francisco city bus, with eight passengers and the driver, pulls out of a downtown bus station and moves through the city stopping once for a new passenger. The passenger, unseen above the chest, walks to the back of the bus pulls the pieces of a sub-machine gun from a tote bag, assembles them, and massacres the eight passenger and the driver. The bus crashes and the killer walks away. Driving onto the scene are homicide detectives Jake Martin (Walter Matthau), Leo Larsen (Bruce Dern) and James Larrinore (Lou Gosset). As they search the bus they find one of the bodies is that of Dave Evans (Anthony Costello), Martin's police partner. It is the search for the murderer and the reason for Evans' presence on the bus that pairs detective Martin and Larsen together. With the help of Evan's girlfriend Kay Butler (Cathy Lee Crosby), they determine that Evans was following leads to close a murder case which Martin, sixteen years on the force, was unable to solve two years previous. Thed search takes the two detectives to most of the seamy sides of San Francisco, with its hustlers, porno theatres, topless and gay bars, boarding houses and restaurants, from the rankest to the plushest. Aware that he has been forced upon Martin, that Larsen, a veteran detective in his early 30's , tough, mischievous, blunt and slightly crass, does his best to make his replacement of Evans as subtle as possible. Martin, withdrawing into himself, ignores Larsen. In the pursuit of Evans' leads, Mratin discovers a bizarre possible solution linking the unsolved murder and the bus massacre. Unable, by the lack of evidence to explain his theory to Larsen, he attempts to convince him to pursue his theory and deviate from the the instructions of their superiors. At first, Larsen refuses, but as his respect for Martim and his unorthodox police procedure increases, Larsen agrees and the two policemen set out to trap the mass murderer.

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Movie Reviews

Time Out - 8/10 by Chris PetitBy the end, complete with car chase and split-second shooting, the film has become indistinguishable from all those movies it's trying so hard to disown.
The Spectator - 6/10 by Duncan FallowellThe film is interesting for what it shows of San Francisco's undertown but its psychology is lame [and] the plot an illogical mess.
TIME Magazine - 4/10 by Richard SchickelIt loses a great deal in the translation from Stockholm to San Francisco's Dirty Harry country. Gloomy authenticity, for one thing; pace and a genuine sense of puzzlement, for others.
User Review - 10/10 by Camilo TBetween THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS and THE LAUGHING POLICEMAN it's a tie. Know what I mean?
User Review - 10/10 by Christopher JOne of my personal favorite cop/investigation films. The level of detail in continuity, atmosphere, and realism is really top-notch. If you loved Zodiac, definitely give this a shot, you'll see where Fincher got a lot of inspiration!
User Review - 8/10 by Johannes JFrom the early-70's zenith of crime and police-centered films, 'The Laughing Policeman' deserves credit, respect and recognition as a fine, gritty, accurate work that shows the way real officers interact and go through their work-days and solve crimes. Walter Matthau, mostly known for his astute comedic touch, is excellent, as is Bruce Dern, who's promoted to an uneasy partnership with Matthau, when the latter's partner, who was on vacation yet took an unsolved case home with him, is at the wrong place at the wrong time, part of a brutal mass murder on board a bus. The well-directed script shows how alienated a good policeman is from his family, how hated he is by most of the community, and the blind alleys and dead ends he has to go through in order to solve the case, and have it hold up in a court of law. It's 'Dirty Harry' or the 'French Connection' films done honestly, not as a fever dream of wish fulfillment from the policeman's perspective (though I must admit I love those too!)...
User Review - 8/10 by Sam MSometimes nothing beats a good, gritty crime thriller!
User Review - 8/10 by Danny RStuart Rosenberg's solid, tense crime drama based on a Swedish award winning novel by Per Wahloo and Maj Sjowall, the story is transplanted from Stockholm to San Francisco. The late great Walter Matthau delivers one of his most accomplished, detailed performances, as a tough police lieutenant investigating a grisly massacre on board a city bus by a madman, who opened up with a machine gun and murdered eight people. He discovers that his former partner, a detective is one of the victims, Matthau uncovers unsavory things about his ex-partner, and that many of the victims had shady lives, which shrouds the killer's identity even more. But Matthau and his current partner, played superbly by Bruce Dern, are running out of time because the killer is getting ready to attack another city bus. Astute direction by Stuart Rosenberg, fine supporting performances by Louis Gossett Jr, Albert Paulsen, Anthony Zerbe, Anthony Costello, Val Avery, Joanna Cassidy, and Cathy Lee Crosby. Good suspense and plot twists, outstanding cinematography by David M. Walsh. A gritty period piece, and accurate 70's police procedural from the golden age of urban American films. Highly Recommended.
User Review - 8/10 by Michael WExcellent 70s cop flick led by Walter Matthau during his best run of films after leaving Neil Simon comedy roles. Policeman follows several dead leads and flaky sources while pursuing answers about why his supposedly off-duty partner is found among the victims in a mass killing aboard a city bus.
User Review - 8/10 by Richard DA pretty solid cop film with a great cast. It didn't feel like anything particularly special, especially given the slew of great cop films that came out in this era, but it was engaging. I thought the solution was pretty obvious almost from the first few minutes, but it's not exactly a mystery. I especially did like the dynamics between Walter Matthau and Bruce Dern. Dern almost steals the picture.

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