REVIEW: L.A. CONFIDENTIAL (1997)
Screenplay by Brian Helgeland & Curtis Hanson Directed by Curtis Hanson Produced by Arnon Milchan & Curits Hanson & Michael Nathason Based on the novel by James Ellroy Music by Jerry Goldsmith Actors inclue Kevin Spacey, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, James Cromwell, David Strathairn, Kim Basinger, Danny DeVito.
*SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!* The following review contains many spoilers to the movie, if you have not seen this movie (what are you waiting for?) and do plan to see it in the future, please stop here.
Early 1950s, Los Angeles, a setting that repeatedly draws writers' and filmmakers' fascination since the days of film noir. The story of "L.A. Confidential" is centered around three police officers, however, is not really a noir, contrary to the claim of many critics. It is not about a simple twist of fate turning an ordinary man into a criminal, or a femme fatale plotting an evil scheme. It's a crime drama with a lot of brain and blood, filled with suspense and surprise -- the result, a wonderfully crafted piece of work.
Lieutenant Edmund Jennings Exley (played by Guy Pearce) joined the police force to follow his father, a highly decorated policeman killed in the line of duty. He quickly gains everyone's despise for snitching on his fellow officers about "The Bloody Christmas" incidence -- a bunch of drunken policemen beating up Mexican prisoners. Among his haters is Detective Wendell "Bud" White (played by Russell Crowe), a well-known strongarmed man who is feared by all wife-beaters in the city. The third protagonist is Sergant Jack Vincennes (played by the always lovable Kevin Spacey), a celebrity cop on the narcotic division who likes to bust drug-sniffing actors and actresses and works as a "technical advisor" on the police TV show "Badge of Honor." He loves the spotlight and being on the cover of "Hush-Hush" magazine, a gossip tabloid run by Sid Hudgens (played by Danny DeVito).
The central mistery is "The Nite Owl Massecre" in which 6 people are slaughtered, including Bud White's partner Dick Stansland and a girl who look like Rita Haworth. Exley, White and Spacey start on different tracks, all become somhow involved into this case and form an unlikely alliance to solve it. In the process, we have a handful of puzzling and messy clues including 3 black young man and a gang rape, some pornographic pcitures, call girls who are cut like movie stars and entertain the rich and powerful of "the city of fallen angles" and a suave businessman who run this ring of prostitution, Pierce Patchett (played by David Strathairn), plus a romance between Bud White and a prostitute Lynn Bracken who looks like Veronica Lake. In the middle of all this is the riddling Captain Dudley Smith (played by James Cromwell) who favors violence as the basic means of solving crimes and is constantly trying to recruit White into his "extracurricular activities" often set in Victory Motel.
The spirit of this film is deeply cynical, with conspiracy upon conspiracy, and corruption of city officials closely knit with organized criminals and Hollywood showbiz and tabloid journalism. Police brutality is encouraged in LAPD and coverups are routine. It is the same city of sins as that in Darshiell Hammet and Raymond Chandler's novels -- glamorous, filthy, decadent, corrupt and fascinating, with plenty of shadowed spots hiding the evil.
The original James Ellroy's novel of the same title is an incredibly complex mass of murders, conspiracies, crimes and the darkest secrets of human minds. It is virtually impossible to adapt it straight from the book, so writer Helgeland and Hanson come up with their own story line that is equally complex and make perfect sense, but more effective and comprehensible in a 2-hour movie, while saving all the goodies from the book -- blocks of intense scenes, tasty dialogues, brutal actions and, most of all, complicated, shady characters. They also create several twists of their own that rival the novel, eg. the amusing Lana Turner scene and the good-cop-badd-cop interrogation of D.A. Ellis Lowe, and the extremely original treatment of the death of Jack Vincennes that is more clever than the book.
Although the plot of "L.A. Confidential" is satisfyingly complex as any good mystery/crime thriller with plenty of twists and surprises, the best thing about it is no doubt the characters and the acting performances. It is mind-boggling how they picked the two young Australian actors -- Crowe and Pearce to play the leads and fit in with such perfection. Sporting a squeaky-clean American accent, they are exactly how White and Exley should look and act like and feel like. In the mean time, the writers should be credited for being so fearless to maintain the serious flaws in the characters, flaws that are not decorative and easily forgivable as they often are in the usual heroes in most police/crime dramas. The flaws do not function to juice up the characters, but to present truly ambiguous and fascinating ones.
Russell Crowe's Bud White seems to be just another tough cop who does not hesitate to use a bit force to rough up criminals and bad guys. His violent tendency is hard for us to overlook and deeply troubling. Gradually we learn of the origin of this problem and his hatred for men who abuse women. He is a man carrying an emnormous emotional baggage that he's lucky for maintaining his sanity (although sometimes he doesn't look that sane really). Crowe's rugged good look and uninhibited tenderness at times make White irresistable, especially to female viewers, despite the dark side of him. It is a passionate performance that's radient with intense physical and emotional appeal.
Ed Exley appears to be the straight arrow in the beginning, but the first 30 minutes of the film quickly reveals to us that he is not the by-the-book college boy type we anticipate as a contrast to the explosive Bud White. He is intelligent, calculating and ruthless, ready to squash anyone that gets in the way of his advancement. With the cold eyes behind the rimless spectacles and the occasional sly half-smile, Guy Pearce hits the role with the precision that Exley would be proud of. It is difficult to like Exley as a character, which makes his transformation even more interesting. What drives his transformation is the undying conscience that urges him to put aside his ambition and pursue the true justice.
Conscience is also the key factor to change Jack Vincennes, who is corrupt and sleazy at first. This is the character most detached from the novel, given a different personality and aura, perfected by the marvelous Kevin Spacey. He presents this celebrity cop with his cat-like grace, irresistable smile and sheer confidence, and a couple of priceless moments in which he shows internal conflict by nothing but the look on his face. It is impossile for me not to adore him as an actor.
Two scenes have been considered out of characters -- Exley jumping Lynn Bracken and White beating her for sleeping with Exley. However, it made perfect sense to me from the first viewing and seems evern more logical the second time. It is not immediately obvious but definately within charaters. Exley and White form an nice symmetrical image. They are not the exact opposite as "Lethal Weapon", but the balanced harmoneous contrast that remind me of the symmetry in Chinese poetry. Exley is not the straight arrow when he kills 3 suspects, and White is not the brainless thug when he does his own investigation on Nite Owl case and manages to always stay one step ahead of Exley who considers himself vastly superior and smarter than White.
The characters are the stongest elements of the film, and also the weakness. It would work better if the writer sacrefice a little time of the plot and invest it into digging the characters. We know Bud White's motivation, but what is Exley and Vincennes's personal baggage? I wish the filmmakers explore it a little more than a quick explanation like "Rolo Temasi". As interesting and complicated as the plot is, it still goes the conventional way to tell a crime-solving story and is not terribly profound or deep other than the characters.
The supporting cast are well above average, James Cromwell as Cptn. Dudley Smith, Kim Basinger as the weathered prostitute, Danny DeVito as the sleazy Sid Hudgens. All adaquate and wonderful. But the winners are the three leading men, nailing their roles perfectly. There could be no better interpretation of Ellroy's shady and unlikely heroes.
The cinematography, art design and style are quite authentic, I suppose, to the period of 1950s, but pale in comparison to Carl Franklin's smooth "Devil in a Blue Dress". Director Curtis Hanson delivers numerous tightly paced and well executed scenes: eg. the 3-way interrogation of the Nite Owl suspects, White beating the woman he loves, naturalistic and emotionless violence scenes. And the final shootout at Victory Motel. The grim anticipation of the two partners out-numbered by the villains, the way they pump slugs into attackers' bellies, the bad guy surrending to the approaching police and Exley shooting him in the back, all feel so strongly like the finale of John Woo's "The Killer" minus the passion and slo-mo.
The first time I saw this film, the ending seems like a cop-out, pulling a "Lethal Weapon 2" on the audience, as many other feel the same way. It may look better in the book, but not so convincing on screen. The second time really feels much better, much sadder, and more more grim as the look on Exley's face as he look on with the lone burden on his conscience.
I am a sucker for this genre movies as well as novels, but an even bigger sucker for well-written and well-performed characters. "L.A. Confidential" satisfies both aspects of my appetite. It is still the unmatched best of 1997, a weak year in good movies. I give it A-, the only A in 97 films.
jun
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