Code of Silence

• Directed by Andrew Davis
• May 3, 1985

A cop is caught fighting a gang war as his fellow officers shun him because he wants to take down an irresponsible cop. Seems like a full plate there.

For the time Code of Silence was a bit of a departure from Chuck Norris’ usual films. It is action oriented but often eschews the spin kicks and karate moves that punctuated many of his previous movies. There is effort on the part of director Andrew Davis to make this much more of thriller than an adrenaline-pumping actioner.

The trailer deceptively implies a lot more action and explosions throughout the movie than you actually get. Not to say it’s not action packed but the number of explosions is very small. I’m also not saying Chuck Norris as main character Sergeant Eddie Cusack regularly conducts an actual investigation either. He learns some information but he also muscles his way from one point to another.

It also features Dennis Farina, then a real Chicago cop, as Detective Dorato who is close friends with Chuck Norris’ Sergeant Eddie Cusack. Dorato is mostly comic relief and if he were not in the movie the story would turn out the same. He helps in the opener during the botched raid yet is more a schemer to get off the force with moneymaking ideas not completely thought through. Dennis Farina was only a part-time actor at this time. He reportedly credited this as allowing him to make it into acting full-time though it baffles me given it didn’t really showcase his talent. 

Beyond Farina, there are other familiar faces here as well. Ralph ‘Johnny’Foody as irresponsible cop Detective Cragie, fresh-out-of-drama-school Molly Hagan as mobster daughter Diana Luna, and noted character actor Bert Remsen as Commander Kates. Then there is John Fraser Mahoney as a salesman demonstrating a then cutting-edge police robot. It looks like it is just a moment to show how awesome of a cop Cusack is but also plays into the climax.

Henry Silva, as drug lord kingpin Luis Comacho, is the villain of the story and for the time was the only other notable face beyond Norris. Silva often was cast as criminals or general toughs and nailed it here like always. I don’t think he ever got the praise he deserved for his work. He was one of those guys who could show up and look evil or tough and not do anything. That’s acting!

The slightly jazzy beat of the opening music and the montage of dirty cityscapes easily fits into a few trashy-yet-enjoyable 80s movie. The problem isn’t the music isn’t that special. The problem is that it’s so generic. Mercifully though they did not try to end on some power ballad or love song like, say, Murphy’s Law.

Silence starts with Cusack and other officers engaging in a drug bust where he witnesses aging Detective Cragie plant a gun on a young boy he just accidentally shot. Cusack’s refusal to support a clearly guilty cop causes him to lose respect from officers and puts him alone against Comacho out to do evil things as drug lords always do. I expected the whole code of silence thing to be the main thrust of the story but it serves just to create a situation where he is on his own while highlight his high ideals and ethics.

Cusack is one of those good cops that drives the crappiest car not only in the department but in the entire city. All that is missing is a repetitive backfire. Pretty much par for the course in 80s film and television. Always the mark of the best cop on the force.

One thing that impressed me was the clear evidence of Chuck Norris doing many of his own stunts. There is a chase scene with part taking place on top of a Chicago train. Courtesy of modern technology you can see is Chuck on top of that train most of if not the whole time. Not just frozen in a spot but moving around.

This started out as a possible Dirty Harry sequel but after passing through a few hands and some rewriting in landed in the lap of Norris. If it were not for Chuck Norris this movie would be completely forgettable. Casting is everything. The persona he had plus his general screen presence carries this movie. Mix that with the equally big personality of Henry Silva and you get a great movie with a villain that is a match for Chuck.

There are enough thrills and chills that it never gets dull and the dialogue never comes off as silly. Filmed in Chicago, the city is as much of a character as anyone on screen is. In a city known for the likes of Capone, it does use the then much more popular drug runners over the mafia which I thought was a little generic.

Code of Silence may not be a particularly original movie, but it’s an excellent vehicle from Chuck Norris. He along with Silva makes it into something special. If you like your 80s cheese with a side of explosions, then this is for you.