Most overrated films of the 1990s

Rating: 5/10 (2 August 2000)

This film, with it's attitude of "style-at-all-costs and never-mind-the-story-we'll-cover-it-with-'style,'" is perhaps one notch above average. Kim Basinger doesn't resemble Veronica Lake and how she won an Oscar is still a question for the ages. I found myself tolerating the film more than enjoying it, although there are a few scenes which do deliver some memorable images and dialogue. I suppose the biggest disappointment for me was the unnecessary, even offensive Political Correctness which this film uses when referring to groups of people and certain human behavior; bowdlerizing Ellroy's GREAT novel is not the way to do it. FIVE STARS out of ten; read the book instead, unless you prefer wallowing in flashy vapidity.