The Seven-Ups

Directed by Philip D’Antoni, The Seven-Ups follows Roy Scheider’s tough-as-nails detective as he sets out to unravel a plot to kidnap mobsters for money. It’s compelling subject matter that is, despite a promising opening stretch, employed to underwhelming and uninvolving effect by D’Antoni, as the filmmaker, working from Albert Ruben and Alexander Jacobs’ screenplay, delivers a slow-moving, often egregiously convoluted endeavor that remains unable to sustain the viewer’s interest for a more than few minutes at a time – with the movie’s proliferation of positive elements, including a typically stellar turn by star Scheider, generally (and eventually) rendered moot by the arms-length vibe. The Seven-Ups‘ failure is especially disappointing given the potential of its setup and gritty atmosphere, and it’s worth noting, as well, that the picture boasts one of the best and most exciting car chases in the history of cinema (it’s just that good) – although such compelling attributes are crushed beneath the weight of a storyline that is, for the most part, completely lackluster. By the time the anticlimactic finale rolls around, The Seven-Ups has definitively cemented its place as a fairly massive disappointment that feels like it should be much, much better.

** out of ****

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