Seven years after the end of the Kojak TV
series, Telly Savalas returned to make seven TV movies over the next five
years. This was the first and Kojak may be a little older but he is still
as tough, taciturn and cynical as ever. For a TV movie it has a good cast
- Max von Sydow, Suzanne Pleshette and a few returnees from the series -
Dan Frazier, George Savalas but no Kevin Dobson who just passed away recently.
He was probably out of town at Knots Landing. He never made much of an impression
on the show but I still missed him in this. Later on he comes back for one
of the films, now an Asst. D.A.
I like the Kojak TV series more now than I did back when it was on the air
and I watch an episode from time to time. After a career of being the bad
guy in films, Savalas was perfect in this role and now you feel like you
are watching a legend at work. Time has made him bigger than ever. I also
enjoy seeing old NYC - the one I moved to in the 1970s - the subway graffiti,
the decrepit tenement building, the bodegas on every street corner, small
coffee shops. A lot of NYC has been cleaned up since then. Some for the good
but it has lost some personality on the way.
A surprising subject in this one with some graphic photos and video of the
death camps in WWII. Someone is killing a bunch of old men who were in the
camps and now living in NYC. Sydow goes on the run and Kojak is brought in
by his daughter to find him. The film keeps it unclear who are the good guys
and who are the bad guys (Nazis). The US Govt are also the bad guys. Only
Kojak stands up for what is right. Good solid start to the TV movies.
