Rating: 
Summary: UNDER APPRECIATED GEM
Review: ACROSS 110th STREET sad to say, was lumped in the blaxpop genre and was denounced for it's violent content. Wrong on both counts: This is an under appreciated gem that is brainy, tough and quick. Veteran action pro Barry Shear was the right director for the film and his experience shows in every frame. The Bobby Womack soundtrack deserved a better fate than having the title track be remembered as an opening for JACKIE BROWN (but this had to be a favorite film of Quentin's...you can read between the lines). The best cuts are: QUICKSAND, IF YOU DON'T WANT MY LOVE and HARLEM LOVE THEME. Too bad none of them charted.
Rating:
Summary: UNDER APPRECIATED GEM
Review: ACROSS 110th STREET sad to say, was lumped in the blaxpop genre and was denounced for it's violent content. Wrong on both counts: This is an under appreciated gem that is brainy, tough and quick. Veteran action pro Barry Shear was the right director for the film and his experience shows in every frame. The Bobby Womack soundtrack deserved a better fate than having the title track be remembered as an opening for JACKIE BROWN (but this had to be a favorite film of Quentin's...you can read between the lines). The best cuts are: QUICKSAND, IF YOU DON'T MY LOVE and HARLEM LOVE THEME. Too bad none of them charted.
Rating:
Summary: real sleeper
Review: Extremely violent film concerning gang warfare between the mafia and their black counterparts.
Rating: 
Summary: A real sleeper.
Review: Extremely violent film concerning gang warfare between the mafia and their black counterparts. Entire cast is very good, as are the action scenes.
Rating: 
Summary: Realistic View of Life among Violence Supported by 2 Leads
Review: Fisrt things first. Some viewers might take this film for so-called blaxploitation film like "Coffy" or "Shaft." Though they have something in common at certain places, "Across the 110th Street" belongs to different genre, namely, a film noir. Or, if you don't get it, imagine "48HRS" without Eddie Murphy's fast talk. You will get a closer picture."Across the 110th Street" begins with a botched robbery in New York City by three men disguised as cops. One false move, and seven dead bodies. The gangsters, to teach some lesson to them, start thier own investigation while a corrupt cop Quinn (whose moral sense is not still dead) reluctantly joins force with no-nonsense, clean-cut Kotto. The film portrays the violent aftermath of the robbery with fast-paced speed, and its tightly-knit plot construction and very authentic locations on Harlem of the 70s -- helped by dim lighting and deserted buildings -- lend the entire film great power to draw the audience to the screen. The story is a little bit trite, I admit, but its grim violence and realistic characters depicted in the film attract your heart, sometimes even in the most morbid scene. But the greatest achievement is two leads: Quinn (who also co-exective produced) often blows up his films with hammy performance, but here he subdues his acting to a convincing degree so that he succeeds in establishing a cop we feel sympathy with, who is clearly heading for the end of his career. Also impressive is Kotto, who tends to be typecast as villain whenever crimes are handled in films. Now his charismatic presence is not wasted, but enhanced effectively along with a veteran cop Quinn. The pair surely is the best part of the film, which relies more on its strength of realistic characterizations than on showy action scenes. And do not forget Bobby Womack's now classic song. It was later used in the opening of "Jackie Brown," by Tarantino (but the version used here is a different, faster take). Its lyrics full of irony are the key to understanding of the film. Across the 110th Street, what will they find?
Rating:
Summary: Realistic View of Life among Violence Supported by 2 Leads
Review: Fisrt things first. Some viewers might take this film for so-called blaxploitation film like "Coffy" or "Shaft." Though they have something in common at certain places, "Across the 110th Street" belongs to different genre, namely, a film noir. Or, if you don't get it, imagine "48HRS" without Eddie Murphy's fast talk. You will get a closer picture. "Across the 110th Street" begins with a botched robbery in New York City by three men disguised as cops. One false move, and seven dead bodies. The gangsters, to teach some lesson to them, start thier own investigation while a corrupt cop Quinn (whose moral sense is not still dead) reluctantly joins force with no-nonsense, clean-cut Kotto. The film portrays the violent aftermath of the robbery with fast-paced speed, and its tightly-knit plot construction and very authentic locations on Harlem of the 70s -- helped by dim lighting and deserted buildings -- lend the entire film great power to draw the audience to the screen. The story is a little bit trite, I admit, but its grim violence and realistic characters depicted in the film attract your heart, sometimes even in the most morbid scene. But the greatest achievement is two leads: Quinn (who also co-exective produced) often blows up his films with hammy performance, but here he subdues his acting to a convincing degree so that he succeeds in establishing a cop we feel sympathy with, who is clearly heading for the end of his career. Also impressive is Kotto, who tends to be typecast as villain whenever crimes are handled in films. Now his charismatic presence is not wasted, but enhanced effectively along with a veteran cop Quinn. The pair surely is the best part of the film, which relies more on its strength of realistic characterizations than on showy action scenes. And do not forget Bobby Womack's now classic song. It was later used in the opening of "Jackie Brown," by Tarantino (but the version used here is a different, faster take). Its lyrics full of irony are the key to understanding of the film. Across the 110th Street, what will they find?
Rating:
Summary: Decent, Gritty 70s Police Movie
Review: I liked the fact that this movie was filmed on location. It was the beautiful 70s New York from the movies I remember as a kid. The story was fine, the action was good. The plot moved along a bit slowly and Anthony Quinn's character was a bit over the top. I love Yaphet Koto and it was great seeing him however I wish he said more in the movie. He was pretty quiet. This film should appear on any list of good 70s crime movies, but its not in the same league as 7Ups, Bullit, French Connection, The Hot Rock, etc.
Rating:
Summary: back in the day
Review: I was sixteen when this movie came out,and still to this day,I can never get enough of it.It's one of the all-time great black flicks.And the sound track by Bobby Womack ranks right up there along with it.
Rating:
Summary: Who would have thought.....an art film!
Review: I'm a big fan of so-called blaxploitation flicks. The combinaton of high camp, low budget, charismatic actors in over the top farcical roles, the slice of 1970s stereotype, all add up to terrific entertainment. what I was really surprised at watching Across 110th Street is that cheap (and plentiful) gore notwithstanding this film is a work of art. Sure blaxploitation stallwarts like Antonio Fargas and Yaphet Koto are here. Sure there are cartoonishly racist white cops, racist Italian mobsters, parasitically pimpin' black criminals, longsuffering and abused black women, just like most of these flicks. But there is also a real sense of drama here. The timing and camera work, the characterization and detail, are all a step above the standard. The acting is generally witty and convincing. Makes me wish I knew more about this film and where it fit in the development of the genre. It gets only 4 stars because the DVD lacks special features. A commentary track would have been great.
Rating:
Summary: My favorite blaxploitation movie
Review: Just a great, gritty film. The script is tight, realistic, and grimly logical. The action is non-stop. All of the performances are effective -- Kotto is particularly fine as a conflicted cop. The direction is well done: Barry Shear is particularly good at staging the action sequences. Good use of Harlem locations. Film has never really found its audience, mainly because it's so relentlessly downbeat. But I don't think any subsequent blaxploitation film -- and I've seen many -- ever again reached this level of quality.
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