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United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), WIDESCREEN (1.66:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Interactive Menu, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: In Sidney Lumet's harrowing portrayal of police brutality, Detective Sergeant Johnson (Sean Connery) has been with the British Police Force for 20 years. In that time, the countless murders, rapes and other serious crimes he has had to investigate has left a terrible mark on him. His anger and aggression that had been suppressed for years finally surfaces when interviewing a suspect, Baxter (Ian Bannen), whom Johnson is convinced is the man that has been carrying out a series of brutal attacks on young girls. Throughout the interview Johnson brutally beats Baxter and during this ordeal he inadvertently reveals that the state of his own mind is probably no better than that of the offenders who committed the crimes that disgusted Johnson originally. SCREENED/AWARDED AT: BAFTA Awards, ...The Offence ( Something Like the Truth )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
24 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
If you want to see some powerhouse acting from Sean Connery (particularly), Ian Bannen and Trevor Howard then watch this film. Directed by Sidney Lumet this is a stirring piece given added impetus by what seems to happen on a regular basis in this country (missing children). This film shows us what Sean Connery can do....and it is blistering.
I showed this film to my son (15 years old), who has been weaned (to a certain extent) on the film's of George Lucas, Steven Spielberg etc.
He said it was the best film he had ever seen - endorsement indeed. See it.
I showed this film to my son (15 years old), who has been weaned (to a certain extent) on the film's of George Lucas, Steven Spielberg etc.
He said it was the best film he had ever seen - endorsement indeed. See it.
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
The Offence tends to have been relegated to a trivia question these days (what was the film United Artists agreed to make as part of their deal to get Sean Connery to play Bond in Diamonds Are Forever?). On some levels it is dated, but the power of Connery's truly extraordinary performance is undiminished. A man almost totally morally decayed by the horrors of the job who sees something he recognises in himself in the suspect in a series of child-rapes (an almost equally impressive Ian Bannen), with terrible consequences, it's a ferocious outpouring of anger and contempt crying out for help he simply won't accept. The eternally under-rated Sidney Lumet's direction is bold and cinematic despite the theatrical origins (the play Something Like the Truth by Thunderball co-writer John Hopkins), the film's dulled palette mirrored by the half-finished grey concrete of the modernist police station: with its large windows looking out at pure blackness, it's more a reflection of the character's state of mind than an attempt at a realistic representation, but it's an entirely appropriate arena.
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
"The Offence", along with another favourite of mine "Zardoz", comes from Sean Connery's 'wilderness' period - somewhere between Bond and his re-emergence in the late 80s. Directed by Sydney Lumet, this intense piece of drama showed that Connery was capable of more than just the odd quip over a martini.
I don't know if it is based on a play, but it does have a theatrical feel to it - a series of extended 2-person scenes telling the story of a police officer's psychological descent into madness and murder. This slightly 'stagebound' feel does not detract from the power of this intelligent, eloquent and engrossing film.
The themes of the film are pertinent today: can one who faces horrible acts on a daily basis become 'corrupted' by them? How do we deal with those accused of abuse? The fact that the film is set in rainy old Blighty as opposed to gritty New York makes this film even more powerful.
I'm not the world's biggest Connery fan, but with this film you have to give him his dues. He acts alongside the likes of Ian Bannen and Trevor Howard and easily holds his own. Not a thriller in the conventional sense, but if you're interested in a study of the nature of 'evil', "The Offence" is highly recommended.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Dated and strange, but well done
A murky tale of a copper going bonkers after seeing too many awful things in his career, then getting entangled in the hunt for a pervert, with disastrous results. Read more
Published 3 months ago by M. P. Campbell
Powerful drama
Incredibly powerful (and downbeat) psychological drama about an interrogation which ends in a homicide. Read more
Published 4 months ago by RK, Germany
Great Acting Certainly
Sidney Lumet's claustrophobic 1972 thriller about the decline into near insanity of police delective Sean Connery is a near master-class in acting, but still leaves me somewhat... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Keith M
Something Like the Truth
The Offence is directed by Sidney Lumet and adapted to screenplay by John Hopkins from his own play titled This Story of Yours. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Spike Owen
Brilliantly made but deeply disturbing
I got this following an article in The Guardian, which didn't really prepare me for the content. I was also interested as it has the only film score by Harrison Birtwistle. Read more
Published 8 months ago by el scorcho
masterpiece by a masterful director and Connery has never been better
.This film is a fine masterpiece by a masterful director. This is definitely one of the gems in his filmography, hardly known film, but a wonderful character study, a powerful... Read more
Published 19 months ago by S. F. husseiny
The Offence , 2008 Optimum release - Unexpectedly gripping and...
Having heard about this film in a pub quiz night (Q - which film did UA let Sean Connery make in return for his appearing in Diamonds are Forever? Read more
Published 21 months ago by Victor
Possibly the best Connery film ever?
Title says it all really. This is an amazingly good film. Connery is utterly superb. Gripping throughout. Highly recommended.
Published 22 months ago by Mr. Paul E. Bishop
Totally absorbing, wholly underrated
This is a marvelous film. A watertight script, neatly edited and a chilling score from Harrison Birtwistle. Read more
Published on 22 Nov 2009 by Gordon Hawk
One of Connery's best
Ok, first things first, I am a huge Connery fan & this movie has always struck me as 1 of his finest in the acting & structure of the movie. Read more
Published on 23 Sep 2009 by Andy B
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