TV REVIEW : ‘The Street’: Revolutionary and Repugnant

An extraordinary new cop show officially premieres tonight at 11 on Channel 13 (following a weekend “sneak preview”). In terms of technique, “The Street” is one of the most revolutionary programs of the ‘80s. On the other hand, it’s also possibly the most repugnant series to come along during the decade.

At least tonight’s two half-hour episodes (after that only one will be shown weeknights at 11) aren’t hard to watch for the usual reasons--no formula scripts or routine presentation here. “The Street” is tough to take exactly because it is tough.

Tonight’s second episode, for example, starts off with two Newark, N.J., officers (played by Bruce MacVittie and Stanley Tucci) cleaning vomit off the back seat of their black-and-white, and then goes on to a racist and sexist conversation between them, including a discussion about coercing sex from female traffic violators, an attempt by one of them to do just that and then being shot in the groin by the woman, racist goading of the remaining officer’s new (black) partner and a graphic scene showing a knifed, bloody corpse. Oh, yes--and another discussion of vomit.

Nausea may be the reaction in many homes, too, especially since at last report Channel 13 had no plans to bleep any of the show’s very rough language. Meanwhile, others will undoubtedly consider the explicitness of “The Street” Brave New Television. It’s all in the stomach of the beholder.

The bravest thing about “The Street,” however, may be the way it shows everything through the eye of a (mostly) hand-held Sony Betacam--the kind of camcorder you might use to tape vacations.

The technique is fascinating, giving the sordid events and banter much greater impact. This is a long way from usual cop-show approaches, including the music-video style of “Miami Vice.” That’s ironic, because “The Street” is co-produced by former “Miami Vice” story editors John Mankiewicz and Daniel Pyne and by the man who started and ran MTV for several years, Robert Pittman.

Nevertheless, “The Street” doesn’t quite have the courage of its conviction to be documentary-like. Camera placement and lighting is occasionally all too noticeably not what a documentary crew would use. If the show could consistently achieve an unartificial viewpoint, the technique would be more impressive.

This mean “Street” may turn out to be the biggest love-it-or-hate-it show of the season, even if it is in limited syndication rather than on a network. Some viewers--including this one--will need a few more shows to decide which side to take.

One thing’s for sure already, though: “The Street” is at least as brutal as it is brave, and it’s questionable whether wallowing in its dark, dark night is worth the time, no matter how revolutionary this show may be.