YMMV for the film:
- Award Snub: While the film received several accolades, it only received a Screenplay nomination by the Oscars, overlooking Lumet's direction and Treat Williams' performance.
- Funny Moments: Cappalino and Paige warn Danny not to wear a wire when going to meet a suspect who is known for being able to spot microphones. When Danny goes to meet the suspect, his buddy starts to frisk Danny for a mic. Danny says that they should check behind his balls for a wire, then dares the suspect to cop a feel. Later on, Cappalino and Paige express relief that Danny didn't wear a wire... and Danny produces the tape he made. Where did he wear the wire? "Right where I told that fat fuck. Under my balls." Cappalino and Paige crack up.
- Heartwarming Moment: Early on, Danny's wife warns him that Cappalinonote and Paigenote , Danny's handlers in the D.A.'s office, don't care about him and won't go to bat for him. At first, it seems she's right, especially when Cappalino and Paige leave the office for bigger jobs, and Danny ends up working with Mario Vincentenote , who shows he's sympathetic to what Danny's going through. At the end, Danny is forced to confess to all of his crimes; rather than three instances of corruption, Danny has done enough to fill 85 pages. Several of the lawyers Danny has worked with are demanding that he be prosecuted... but Cappalino, Paige, and Vincente are Danny's staunchest defenders, saying that Danny has atoned for his crimes and more. Vincente threatens to resign publicly if Danny is prosecuted, and Paige flat-out says Danny is a hero.
- Spiritual Successor: To Lumet's previous police corruption film Serpico
- Vindicated by History: Released to mixed reviews and a lukewarm box office, the film currently holds a high (92 percent) rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and critics now consider it one of the best cop dramas from The '70s and a chilling warning about the corruption of the The War on Drugs.
