Sweeney!

"The roughest, toughest men from London's greatest crime squad smash their way onto the big screen!"

1977 1h 37m EN

👍

6.7

SOLID

⭐

6.7

IMDB

★6.7TMDB · 28★6.7IMDB · 1,661

ActionCrimeDramaThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

When one of Regan's snouts complains that his girlfriend's recent suicide was murder, the flying squad detective feels compelled to investigate. He uncovers a conspiracy that reaches the heart of the government, and finds himself fitted up, suspended and under the scrutiny of Special Branch.

“The roughest, toughest men from London's greatest crime squad smash their way onto the big screen!”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

John Thaw
Det. Insp. Jack Regan
Dennis Waterman
Det. Sgt. George Carter
Barry Foster
Elliott McQueen
Ian Bannen
Charles Baker, MP
Colin Welland
Frank Chadwick
Diane Keen
Bianca Hamilton
Lynda Bellingham
Janice Wyatt
Brian Glover
Mac

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: David Wickes
Writers: Ranald Graham
Languages: English
Countries: United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

49 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "The Sweeney Movie Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by David Wickes, shot by Dusty Miller. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Denis King. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Chris Burt shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

John Thaw and Dennis Waterman and Barry Foster carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The roughest, toughest men from London's greatest crime squad smash their way onto the big screen!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

David Wickes directs. Dusty Miller behind the camera. Denis King scores. Chris Burt cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United Kingdom. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
249 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Part of the "The Sweeney Movie Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Directed by David Wickes, shot by Dusty Miller. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Denis King. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Chris Burt shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7John Thaw and Dennis Waterman and Barry Foster carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "The roughest, toughest men from London's greatest crime squad smash their way onto the big screen!".
9IMDB entry: tt0076788 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Only 28 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Dusty Miller
Original score: Denis King
Editing: Chris Burt
Runtime: 97 min · 1h 37m
Status: Released
Budget: $209,595
Original language: EN
Certification (US): 18
IMDB: Sweeney! (1977)
IMDB rating: 6.7/10 · 1,661 votes

Awards

1 win total

Part of

The Sweeney Movie Collection

The movie series based on the classic 70s British cop show.

Also by

David Wickes

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2024-04-06
★ 6/10
Yikes but there's some shocking acting in this film adaptation of the popular television series. It seems that one of Her Majesty's ministers - "Baker" (Ian Bannen) might be a little too close to the oil industry as a major announcement on pool pricing is due to be made in London. The Flying Squad's finest "Regan" (John Thaw) and sidekick "Carter" (Dennis Waterman) are soon embroiled, but as the body count starts to mount up the former is suspended from duty. Undeterred, he faces the wrath of not just his own bosses but also of some blokes who're marauding round the city with machine guns. His searching leads him to high-class hooker "Bianca" (Diane Keen) and all of this is going on whilst we the just sense that adviser "McQueen" (Barry Foster) is up to no good. Thaw does try, a bit too hard I reckon, but the rest of this is pretty sloppy stuff. Keen dreadfully over-acts, Foster seems to pick up an accent that vacillates wildly from scene to scene and Waterman doesn't really feature enough to make much difference to this pretty predictable cop drama where the rules are meant for someone else. Gritty? Possibly - but I just figured that in the end, they all pretty much deserved each other. Of it's time, I'd say - and that day has long gone.

Production companies