It's always about the quality of the drugs. "Panic in Needle Park" a vintage 70's drama starring Al Pacino in his first major film role focuses on a group of heroin addicts that hang around the appropriately nicknamed "Needle Park" in New York City. Using a love story as a backdrop makes the film even more poignant and powerful. Pacino plays Bobby a small time hood who takes up with Helen (Kitty Winn). Helen decides she was going to go home to Fort Wayne, Indiana after a botched abortion lands her in the hospital. But the Charming Bobby convinces her to stay as she falls in love she gets dragged into his world of drug addiction. ***

A harrowing but powerful film, "Panic at Needle Park" has been unjustly ignored for DVD release until recently. That's a shame because Pacino and Winn (who got relegated to second string roles in "The Exorcist" and TV appearances after this. She currently plays leading roles on Broadway. Raul Julia has a small part in the film as well as does Paul Sorvino) give terrific winning performances as the doped up star crossed lovers. Featuring an intelligent script by Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne and terrific direction by Jerry Schatzberg ("Scarecrow", "Honeysuckle Rose"), "Panic in Needle Park" is one of those classic films that gets overlooked because it deals in the gritty reality of the world much more than "Star Wars". ---

Image & Sound:

Fox has done a nice transfer for the film. The dark look of the film is much in keeping with some of the screenings I've seen in the last decade. The film looks crisp and clear with occasional soft spots in the film image but overall, the film looks very, very good. *** Audio is pretty clear overall. The film was shot with dialogue recorded on location so it's not perfectly clear all the time (the director clearly was going for the reality of the scene over the perfection of the sound). Keep in mind that it was recorded and released in 1971 so mono was the norm. Fox hasn't enhanced the soundtrack to 5.1 not that it would benefit it at all. They have done a good job keeping the natural sound and tone intact of the original soundtrack.

We only get the original theatrical trailer. While I would have liked to see a featurette on the making of the movie featuring the actors looking back at the making of this seminal and important minor classic. Director Schatzberg's commentary would also have been welcomed. I suspect that the market for the film and the money Fox had to spent on the project probably prevented this from occurring.

Final Words: