An instant classic.

Rating: 10/10 (2 February 2004)

L.A. Confidential has one of the best screenplay's ever written, which is complimented by excellent castingwhich produced some top-notch performances from some virtual unknowns at the time. Guy Pearce, Russel Crowe, Kevin Spacey, and James Cromwell were all perfectly cast for this film. Kim Basinger won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role, although some of her fellow cast members were more deserving of an award. Had the Hype-tanic not been released the same year, this film would have completely swept the Oscars. Damn undeserving Titanic. Oh well. That just goes to show that the Academy doesn't necessarily reflect respect where it's deserved. Even though this film scored a few, the Titanic swept the 1997 awards, including Best Picture. My heart will go onNO!
Even without the compliment of an A-grade screenplay, the acting performances are truly worth recognition. This was the first movie I had the pleasure of watching Guy Pearce in and I was blown away. He really seems to fit his part in this film and you really feel the emotions that the other characters have towards him. Russell Crowe and Kevin Spacey also fit right in and provide excellent performances. Spacey easily pulls off being the smart ass showboat, and Crowe is very convincing as the reactionary, muscle-bound "bad" cop. James Cromwell also plays the chief of detectives flawlessly. And although Kim Basinger won Best Supporting Actress, I must assume that her competition was laughable at best. She plays a hooker, wow. Not that she didn't do it well, I just didn't feel it was all that deserving of an Oscar. I mean, how hard is it to play a tramp? But that's not her fault, or anyone else's involved in the picture....and it certainly doesn't take away from anything here.
Curtis Hanson really shows everyone how it's done with this one, pulling off truly masterful directing techniques in every aspect. There isn't any area where I feel he could have improved. Everything flows perfectly and evenly, and the moods and pace are controlled very well. The general noir feeling he was going for was done nothing short of impeccable. The story itself is extremely entertaining and has a great ending, but I won't comment on that....you can see for yourself. I will simply say that the story is one of the best I've come across in a long time. Overall, simply perfect in every way and will easily become a classic.
Definitely a great addition to anyone's collection. 10/10