A gripping, modern film noir

Rating: 10/10 (2 April 2000)

Idealistic and clever, but vain, police officer Edmund Exley (Guy Pearce) clashes with tough, unorthodox detective Bud White (Russell Crowe) over police conduct and a celebrity lookalike prostitute (Kim Basinger). After a shooting incident at the Night Owl Cafe, both begin to realise that something isn't quite right and start to unravel a seedy underworld of sex, murder and organised crime.
All the performances are almost faultless and the pace rockets along dragging you deeper and deeper. There are some marvellous twists in the plot and no character can be easily outlined as good or bad. Add to the cast James Cromwell as Captain Dudley Smith and Kevin Spacey as Jack Vincenz and you're definitely on to a winner.
I consider this film to be the best I've ever seen, it's that good. Go watch now! 10/10