live like a cop

Buddy cops share a special bond: whether it’s reminiscing over that last car chase or seeing how pissed off the Captain is after your last report, it’s a cinematic relationship with roots deeper than most cinematic marriages. So the homo-erotic undertones in Live Like A Cop, Die Like A Man are mostly likely unintentional. After all, these guys are locked, loaded and taking names on the mean streets of Rome. And when they’re not hunting down the bad guys as part of their super-secret undercover police squad, they’re interrogating female witnesses with the sort of macho vigor that only exists in “pizza guy” porn movies. So who cares if they sleep in the same apartment and ride the same motorcycle to work? Directed by gore specialist Ruggero Deodato (from a script by Italian crime specialist Fernando Di Leo), with a title like Live Like A Cop, Die Like A Man you’ve got a lot of testosterone to live up to. And the film surprisingly meets expectations, constructing a fast-paced French Connection / Godfather / Dirty Harry amalgam of “make their own rules” cops out to take down a notorious crime lord…if he doesn’t get them first! The ‘70s street-level photography provides the necessary grit and our heroes’ tendency to snap necks and ask questions later adds the necessary edge. Deodato’s penchant for the red stuff means gore fans will be automatically interested and seeing as Raro Video’s disc is the film’s uncut debut (even its native Italy where it premiered in 1976), it’s a must-have for collectors of obscure Italian poliziotteschi.