Bad Lieutenant

Title: Bad Lieutenant

Director: Abel Ferrara

Released: 1992

Starring: Harvey Keitel, Victor Argo, Paul Calderon, Leonard L. Thomas, Robin Burrows, Frankie Thorn, Victoria Bastel

Plot: An unnamed police Lieutenant (Keitel) is tasked with investigating the rape of a nun as he tries to battle his own demons as his drug and gambling addictions threaten to consume him.  

Review: Back in the late 90’s when I was first seriously getting into film, beyond the surface level enjoyment I already got from my movie watching, Channel 4 here in the UK used to show Extreme cinema; a genre pretty much dead these days with society on a whole becoming harder to shock it would seem. Back then these films were truly seen as pushing boundaries of taste and would be shown as part of their late night schedule on a Friday night. It was from these seasons of films that I was exposed to films such as Greg Araki’s “The Doom Generation” and necrophilia romance “Kissed” which shocked me almost as much as they held a strange fascination for me, knowing that I was watching something which certainly fell outside of the cinematic mainstream, especially with their frequently graphic depicatations of sex, drugs, nudity and any number of taboo subjects. It would also be through these late night movie watching sessions that I would first see this film, which while I might not have followed it fully back then, still proved to be a memorable experience while kick-starting a lifelong fascination with the films of Abel Ferrara whom I mention in my review of “The King of New York” is my director of choice when I feel like watching something truly grimy and once again here it’s what he truly delivers.

As always with Ferrara it is a suitably grimy vision of New York that he once again gives us here, especially with the Lieutenant frequently seeming to take us on a guided tour of its most seediest parts as he hangs out with drug dealers and trades drugs he steals from evidence, while at the same time adding to his own habit. It’s a habit which when combined with his frequent drinking, often finds him in some more than questionable situations as he frequents with prostitutes often in some form of stupor which also gives us one of the more memorable scenes from the film as a naked Keitel staggers around a room wailing into the night as he looks barely capable of functioning in any form. The other talked about scene sees him pulling over a couple of young girls and forcing them to perform for him as he masturbates and curses beside their car.

As well as these two vices and the constant pursuit of them, the Lieutenant also finds himself in a rapidly increasing spiral of gambling debts, as he continues to back the Dodgers as they face off against the Mets over a series of games, while Baseball player Darryl Strawberry seems to be the only hint at any human connection that he has with anyone with the sporadic interactions he has with his family either erupting in volatile outbursts or general neglect as he often appears to be distant even when surrounded by his family. This self-imposed isolation only increasing over the course of the film as he gambles himself into further debts, while his addictions run wild, ultimately coming to ahead as he suffers a breakdown in a church, memorably grovelling and howling for forgiveness to a vision of a post crucified Jesus.

Unquestionably this is not an easy film to view, but despite the frequently graphic nature and crude tone the film takes, Ferrara clearly isn’t aiming to just shock his audience but instead punch them square in the face as he blurs the lines of gritty reality with frequently grotesque imagery. At the same time it is a powerhouse combination that we get from the potent combination of Ferrara’s direction and a bold and fearless performance by Keitel who despite committing numerous hideous and depraved acts still remains grimly watchable.

Similar in many ways to “Taxi Driver” the film views humanity at its darkest, perhaps making it all the more fitting that a nun is chosen as the victim of rape, as here even a symbol of purity and light is not beyond being soiled. At the same time the nun’s refusal to participate in the investigation of her attackers, furthers Ferrara’s own reoccurring ideals of finding forgiveness and compassion even when surrounded by a society fuelled on violence and hatred.

Unquestionably though thi is not the sort of film which is watched for enjoyment in the traditional sense, but this is still a griping if bleak experience and one truly carried by Keitel, whose performance Nicolas Cage would attempt to replicate with perhaps more overacted results in the unrelated, let alone Ferrara despised “Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans”. However if you’re looking for a companion piece to “Taxi Driver” it’s safe to say that this film delivers the goods and more.

End of Watch

Title: End of Watch
Director: David Ayer
Released: 2012
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Peña, Natalie Martinez, Anna Kendrick, Frank Grillo, America Ferrera

Plot: Two police officers Brian Taylor (Gyllenhaal) and Mike Zavala (Michael Peña)find themselves marked for death by the members of a local cartel after they confiscate a cache of money and firearms during a routine traffic stop.

Review: Honestly when I was going into this film I can’t say that I was exactly looking forward to it, especially when it didn’t seem to be exactly bringing anything new to the table with its police procedural setting, much less the fact that it is yet another found footage movie, a genre notoriously difficult to pull off let alone do well. Needless to say that within the opening five minutes I was left astounded by this film.

Written and directed by David Ayer who has had something of a mixed bag of a career as both a writer and director, having previous written the Oscar winning “Training Day”, “Dark Blue” and the star making Vin Diesel vehicle “The Fast and the Furious”, while as a director his most noteworthy film to date was the sadly overlooked “Harsh Times”, something he seems to be trying to correct with this latest offering which grabs hold of it’s audience and refuses to let them go as it takes them through a rollercoaster 109 minutes.

Shot completely on a mixture of handheld and chest mounted cameras aswell as additional shots from the police cruiser video and ariel shots from choppers, Ayer has here managed to build a fully immersive world in which to set his story and somehow has managed to achieve the impossible by actually making the format work to heighten the experience, rather than proving a continual distraction to the viewer as they have to contend with shaky camera and out of focus action shots, all pitfalls which Ayer manages to avoid with his choice of shooting method even going as far as to actually give us a valid reason as to why they are still filming, which in the case of the two officers at the centre of this story is as simple as Brian using the footage for his film making project something while the use of chest camera provides a much more steadier image than has been previous seen in found footage movies to date, while also giving us the thrill of getting first person shooter style shots during shoot outs as firearms are discharged, while the opening chase sequence shot entirely on the cruiser camera, makes for an equally thrilling ride.

Set in South Central LA, it is hard not to draw comparisons between this film and the TV series “Southland” with who it shares the same stomping ground with and certainly a similar style, as the two young officers find themselves continually having to deal with the worst scum he city has to offer, while at the same time walking their own line when it comes to dealing with upholding their law in their district, something especially highlighted by Zavala getting involved in a brawl with one suspect while being cheered on by an enthusiastic Taylor, actions which are surprisingly never called into question especially with Zavala and Taylor filming all of their actions, but then why at the same time are cartel members videotaping their own illegal activities? Ultimately it would seem that these moment are more for the benefit of the audience on terms of building setting rather than setting up key plot points.

Zavala and Taylor are much more than just partners as their partnership sees them more as brothers, than just close friends, for as much as they pick on each others flaws, they genuinely seem to care about each other, even to the point were they have death pacts so that they will look after each other’s wives should they die in the line of duty and it’s a bond which seems to help them survive so many of the horrors they see over course of each patrol they complete, with each shift only seemingly to bring with a whole new set of shocks for them to deal with, especially when even a routine welfare check on an elderly woman uncovers a mass grave of dismembered corpses, especially as he stranglehold of the cartel over he local community only seems to grow ever more stronger, despite the efforts of the police to stem its tide. Still there is no main plot line to the film or main bad guy to foil as Ayer instead sets the flm’s rythem to the day to day routine of police work, as Zavala and Taylor frequently find themselves walking  a tightrope between bordom and bursts of adrenaline fuelled action, never quite sure what the streets will hold for them, as they try to make it to the tituar end of watch.

In terms of casting it is flawless with Gyllenhaal in particular reminding us that he is still capable of the same exciting performances he gave back when made “Donnie Darko” something that I have been waiting along time to see again, especially with his work in the mainstream  lacking any of his earlier energy. Peña meanwhile proves to be equally watchable as he finally gets a more meatier role than he has previously been offered to date, while the real life research the two actors undertook in preparing for their roles which saw them completing twelve hour ride alongs three times a week with members of the Greater Los Angeles area law enforcement agencies, the first of which unexpectingly leading to Gyllenhaal witnessing a murder during the first of these ride alongs and something which seems to have benefit to both of the actors, as they convincingly portray their roles as officers on the beat, while the random conversations such as Zavala reeling off his shopping list of energy drinks he is carrying or questionable relationship advice only adding  to the realism.

Once more Ayer has crafted more than your typical cop movie, while finally writing at the same level again that he was when he gave us "Training Day", as here he continues his ongoing obsession with law enforcement and those they oppose, while demonstrating once more that while the officers might belong to the brotherhood of blue, its one made up of many different shades. Easily one of the best films of the year while once more marking Ayer as name to watch.