I happened to see this movie in it's original release and thought it was terrific. Then years later I caught a network TV showing, and thought I was watching a completely different, and much worse movie. The butchery by the censors was truly breathtaking. Almost every aspect of the film, including most of its more memorable scenes, were deleted and replaced by some other plot that was about something else entirely. Recently I came across a (bootleg) copy of the original uncut film, and it mostly confirmed my positive memory. P.J. is one of the most entertaining action movies of the sixties, and deserves to be seen in its original form. P.J. Detweiler (Peppard) is a former Marine and Korea vet whose career as a private eye is not exactly flourishing - he works out of a New York bar and seems to owe everybody money. Things start to look up when he is hired by super-rich William Orbison (Raymond Burr) as a bodyguard for Orbison's high-priced mistress Maureen (Gayle Hunnicutt). Turns out that Orbison and Maureen are surrounded by a grotesque entourage of relatives and flunkies - who's out to kill whom anyway? After a series of violent and sexy set-pieces, and a side trip to a Caribbean island, P.J. starts to think he is being set up and decides to solve the mystery on his own dime. One of the main reasons the original film has been suppressed is a scene in which one of the characters lures P.J. to a Greenwich Village gay bar ("The Gay Caballero") where he is attacked by a gang of thuggish leather boys. That scene would not be handled the same way today, but it is a fairly small incident in the context of the film. Another of the many scenes deleted or censored in the TV version is the opening credits sequence, in which P.J. participates in a motel-room entrapment of an unfaithful wife. The 6.4 rating here on IMDB is almost certainly skewed by people who saw only the TV version. The original deserves much higher, at least a 7.2. I can't quite call it a classic, but it is without doubt one of the most enjoyable action movies of its era. It's very much a sixties film, filled with bright primary colors, eye-winking sexiness, and tongue-in-cheek humor almost from the James bond mold. Peppard is a very likable hero and makes you wish for the never-made sequel. It's also fun to see Burr revert to his pre-Perry Mason persona as a heavy. You will enjoy this movie - if you can find it, that is.

I haven't seen this movie since it came out, and I sure would like to see it again -- whole & unedited, of course. It was a lot of fun and very 60's. Raymond Burr was great, Gayle Hunnicutt was very sexy, and George Peppard was at his most flippant. I still remember the scene where Orbison orders his long-suffering secretary to type all letters using a half inch margin in future, and do a study for him on the savings over using the prior margins. I have worked for guys who would have done that. I can even remember the calypso welcoming song the hopeful residents did for Orbison when he and his entourage arrived on the island. Bright, beautiful scenery, snappy dialog -- just a really entertaining movie.What's up at Universal? They have treasures in the vault like this that are totally unavailable.

This was the first 'X' certificate film I was able to see, under the UK title 'New Face In Hell' (at 103 minutes as opposed to the original 109 minutes). I've never forgotten it and have been searching for a copy of it for years. Can anyone explain why it's disappeared and has never been available? It was an exciting, smart, brutal thriller with a great cast, very slickly put together by a respected director. Here are some of the things I remember: a slow tracking shot going up to a white-haired Raymond Burr sitting at a desk as he explains to George Peppard what he wants him to do for him; George Peppard saying there'll be a "New face in hell for breakfast" when threatening somebody; a man being killed, very messily, under an underground train - a guard shouts "Somebody get a first-aid kit", to which George Peppard replies, "You're gonna need a big one"; and a huge splatter of blood when somebody's shot dead in the final scene. Not to mention various vicious fist-fights ... and the gorgeous young Gayle Hunnicutt. This was 'sex and violence' at its best! Come on, Universal, find it in your archives and get it released!

The private eye genre had something of a rebirth in the late 1960s, most notably with Paul Newman's excellent "Harper,'' Frank Sinatra's "Tony Rome'' movies and James Garner doing a nice turn as "Marlow.'' But George Peppard merits a tip of the fedora for his work in this forgotten goodie, "P.J.'' Peppard's PJ is hired as a bodyguard for a fat-cat's (played by a menacing Raymond Burr) mistress, unleashing a plot of double-crosses and, eventually murder. Peppard is great as a wisecracking P.J. Detwieler and the above average script is perfectly matches to his rapid-fire, half-bemused delivery. Gayle Hunnicutt is great as the kept woman, the fantastic (and overlooked)Brock Peters turns up in small, but pivotal role and a young, "pre-MacMillan and Wife'' Susan Saint James spews a few deliciously catty lines. And there is a great ending. Sadly, "PJ" can't be found on video or DVD. And I haven't seen it aired on tv since I saw it (and recorded it, luckly) when a Chicago station aired it 1986. Too bad. This little gem deserves to be seen.