Al Pacino is the Atlas of Serpico, his central performance is the strength of the entire movie, with other aspects being only a little more than serviceable. The real Serpico seems like a good guy, but the dedication to the presumed facts is likely what drags the entertainment value down. The narrative gets extremely formulaic as Serpico is continually dragged around, dealing with the same opposition and dashing hopes for hours. At least we truly feel his seemingly endless frustration.