SWEENEY 2

UK, 1978, 109 minutes, Colour.

John Thaw, Dennis Waterman, Denholm Elliot, Ken Hutchison, Anna Gael, Barry Stanton, Nigel Hawthorne.

Directed by Tom Clegg.

The Sweeney was a popular television series in 1975 to 1978, 53 episodes. It starred John for and Dennis Waterman. It featured especially  police investigations in London and beyond. It was created by Ian Kennedy Martin and many of the screenplay is written by Troy Kennedy Martin, including this spin-off film.

The first spin-off film came in 1977, Sweeney, large cast including some from the series. The second spin-off, Sweeney 2, in 1978 with the key leads but, mostly, with a different cast. It featured a cameo by Denholm Elliot as a corrupt police officer sent to jail, interrogated by the lead investigator, John Regan (John Thaw) as well as featuring, before Yes, Minister, Nigel Hawthorne as a police superior.

There is a lot of action, daring robberies, car crashes and chases, a long sequence in the disconnecting of a bomb in a hotel, lots of camaraderie and jokes amongst the squad, scenes with the two central characters, and a visit in Malta where the International gang of thieves created a home and a commune with their wives and children.

As a film in itself, it seems fairly conventional. Dennis Waterman had been a child star and made his mark with The Sweeney as well as Mind and New Tricks. John Thaw had appeared in many films, 53 episodes of The Sweeney, 27 episodes of Kavanagh QC and, of course, 33 episodes of Morse. His character in Sweeney seems conventional and somewhat callow compared with the depths in the writing of the character of Morse, his partnership with Lewis, his police style and investigations as well as his personal life.