Loui Blair It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Candida It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

Francene Odetta It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

MartinHafer Before I talk about this pilot movie for "Starsky and Hutch", I have an important confession....I have never seen the ensuing TV series. Yep, I was certainly old enough to watch it...just never did. However, my curiosity was piqued because this movie was an installment of "The ABC Movie of the Week"...and I've watched several dozen of these movies recently on YouTube. However, this pilot was not on YouTube (probably for copyright reasons), so I saw it on the first disc for the TV series...and it's available through Netflix.The show begins with two tough assassins killing a young couple making out in a cool looking red and white Ford Torino. Why is the car important? It's the spitting image of Starsky's car and the cops immediately wonder if the murderers were actually trying to kill Starsky (Paul Michael Glaser) and Hutch (David Soul). Through the course of most of the film, the two detectives look for their would- be murderer...until they realize that the killings and motivations weren't exactly what they first thought.This is a reasonably good cop film made for television...but never once did it scream out "This is so good it MUST become a TV series"! In the case of "The Six Million Dollar Man", the pilot movies clearly DID and were very unique and compelling. This film, on the other hand was good...but not great. Worth seeing but nothing particularly memorable.By the way, when the two assassins are in their hotel room, I did enjoy seeing one of them (Richard Lynch) reading "The Age of Voltaire"...a very large and cerebral sort of book. This guy was no dummy and proves just how far in life you can go if you exercise your mind. Sadly, in a scene soon after this, you see the guy shoot at Hutch and the nearby car explodes...which was pretty stupid (and next to impossible).

Denise Lf I'm not sure I ever saw the Starsky and Hutch pilot when it premiered in 1975, but I was a huge fan of the show in 1976 and 1977; my diary is filled with references to my favorite episodes. So, I tried to watch the pilot with fresh eyes and to be conscious of what would grab your attention in 1975, before you knew these characters at all. First, the banter between Starksy and Hutch keeps things moving and keeps them connected as the story moves along. I think they were channeling M*A*S*H a bit here, as it's the only show I can remember that does something similar with dialog. It's a serious job and trouble is always around the corner, but they can counter some that with a bit of humor and irony that only they are in on. Next, we have a team, partner cops. Most cop shows at the time were single player - Columbo. Kojak. Rockford, even Gunsmoke. The Starsky and Hutch pilot establishes them right away as a team, patrolling that beat together for at least three years. They don't always play by the rules, but they get the job done, even if it is a crazy, thankless job. And the only way they know how to do the job is together, depending on each other for everything, because no one else is a completely trusted commodity. You watch them puzzle out the situation; Hutch figures out "who", Starsky figures out "why". In the climatic scene, they run the stairs to catch the bad guys, separately but together, Starsky inside, Hutch outside, and in constant communication because when they work together, no one can beat them. And you, as a viewer, are (almost) included in their safe little circle of two. It's them (and you) against the world, and I think we've got this.The pilot has held up quite well after forty years. Except for the pay phones, walkie-talkies and clothes, it still looks real and goes together great. It's my goal to review every episode. I was pretty obsessed with the show as a love-sick teen, but now I can appreciate the subtleties, the really fine acting and the quality of the dialog. Onward and forward.

Hippiesetter99 This isn't any 70's cop show. It really shows how two very macho men can become the best of friends. Both Starsky and Hutch have the looks and the attitude to bring the "bad guys down". They display a great comfort in what they do. Starsky seems to be the innocent one, he's always out to have fun while doing his job. Glaser does a great job with the part. Hutch on the other hand usually is making sure Starsky is OK. Soul also does a wonderful job with the character of Hutch. There are some great episodes when you can really feel how much they care for one another and they would do anything for the other one. Both really show there emotion when they feel their pal is in trouble. The "Starsky Mobile" which is an awesome car to use in the show adds more excitement(with the burn-outs).I'm making this comment as a 16 yr old girl who loves the 70's and appreciates a great friendship.

torino this is the pilot for the t.v series Starsky and Hutch. it has a great story as the detectives search for the two hit men hired to kill them. best line in movie has Starsky asking Hutch "who are we suposed to trust?" Hutch replies "me and thee".these two guys really care about each other,which is what made the following series so great.