Sharky's Machine is a 1981 crime drama directed by Burt Reynolds. It is based on the 1978 novel of the same name by William Diehl. After police officer Tom Sharky (Burt Reynolds) bungles a narcotics sting, he is forced to become a member of the vice squad led by Lieutenant Friscoe (Charles Durning). While working on the squad, Sharky finds out that there is a prostitution ring in the city that serves affluent, influential citizens. He soon discovers that the evil crime lord Victor Scorelli (Vittorio Gassman) is the leader of the ring, and his most valuable prostitute is lovely Dominoe (Rachel Ward). Dominoe is in a relationship with gubernatorial candidate Donald Hotchkins (Earl Holliman), and Victor is using this arrangement to blackmail Hotchkins so that he can wield political power. When Sharky begins to fall in love with Dominoe, he struggles to save her from Victor and to bring down the crime ring.moreless