Film Noir Revisited -- And Man, Is It Sweet, Daddy-O

Rating: 9/10 (6 August 2001)

Film noir is a style that's usually difficult to pull off. Invariably, any movie done in the film noir style features flawed characters that are frequently unlikable; shadowy crosses, double-crosses, and triple-crosses that can make the story difficult to follow; and an unhappy ending that ultimately seems unsatisfying. "L.A. Confidential", which can only be defined as a film noir mystery, meets all of the required criteria above . .. and yet it's still one hell of a compelling, fascinating movie. "L.A. Confidential" takes a lot of difficult material and blends it all together seamlessly. For that alone, the film should be noteworthy; the fact that the story is outstanding and the acting is exceptional pushes "L.A. Confidential" into the realms of the truly great.
"L. A. Confidential" is a gritty, stylish film patterned after the mysteries and crime drama films of the 1940s and 1950s, particularly those of Humphrey Bogart and Alan Ladd. Containing a dizzying number of plots, subplots, and enough red herrings to choke a horse, the storylines and characters are slowly woven together to create one single dark and beautiful film. It begins with some gruesome killings -- which are dubbed by the press as "The Nite Owl Murders" -- and Ed Exley (Guy Pearce), a no-nonsense police detective, is assigned to the case. Ed's reluctant partner is flashy Sergeant Jack Vincennes (Kevin Spacey), a vain cop who sees himself more as part of the entertainment business than the police force. After some questionably ethical police work, Vincennes believes that he has wrapped up murders, but Detective Bud White (Russell Crowe) -- a cop usually better known for his fists than for his sleuthing ability -- discovers that there may be more to the "Nite Owl Murders" than meets the eye, and may involve some of L.A.'s highest ranking officials. As the case truly begins to unravel, it becomes obvious that only the unlikely teaming of White, Exley and Vincennes can hope to ever discover the truth about what really happened.
Based on the James Ellroy novel of the same name, "L.A. Confidential" perfectly captures the look and feel of the sweaty, sleazy underbelly of 1950s Los Angeles. Mirroring the events of the film, everything on screen has a slightly dirty look to it, as if nothing can be entirely clean or free of guilt. Even the language used is perfect -- the presence of the character Sid Hudgens (Danny DeVito) really brings to the forefront a distinct Fifties-ish feel to things with his weekly gossip column, where everything is `on the Q-T and strictly hush-hush'. And the stories themselves are marvelous as well, each starting out from an isolated spot in the film, but eventually winding and coiling together to form one single powerhouse of a plot. Some of the machinations by which these stories and plot wrap together seem slightly forced; but for the most part, it's pulled off so masterfully that these minor blemishes really don't matter.

Director Curtis Hanson does a terrific job of evoking the film noir feel without seeming like he's just mindlessly copying it. The deliberate pacing of the film, the way certain shots are framed in shadow, the manner in which ominous events are foretold . . . everything helps to add to the story one way or another; there's precious little that seems like a waste of time or takes away from the film. Equally impressive is just how the film is pieced together - there's a lot of stories and even more information for the audience to digest in `L.A. Confidential'. However, it's all laid out in a sequence that's relatively simple to understand; Hanson also knows where to let the characters tell the story, and where to let the actual visuals of the film tell the story. `L.A. Confidential' is a film that easily could've been little more than a convoluted mess in other hands; in Curtis Hanson's hands, though, it's a gem of a film.
And the acting . . . wow, where to begin? (With the main characters, I suppose . . .) Kevin Spacey is great as Jack Vincennes, the cynical cop "on the take" who does a terrific job of letting the world know how much he doesn't give a damn about anything . . . but when push comes to shove, he reluctantly cares about a lot, perhaps even too much. Not many actors could pull off the part of Vincennes, but Kevin Spacey makes it look easy. Russell Crowe is equally great as detective Bud White, who for much of the movie is little more than a pit bull in human form. However, Bud proves to be far more dangerous when he actually starts combining his mind with his muscle. Finally, Guy Pearce complements the other main characters in grand style as the arrogant, self-righteous, by-the-book Lieutenant Ed Exley. It's a nice touch in the film that he only starts to become likeable -- and a better cop -- when he starts bending the rules and becoming more unethical in his approach to policework; it's also interesting to notice that as he becomes less and less moral, Vincennes and White start becoming more and more moral. Exley's a little more subtle than the other two main characters, but he's equally as good as they are, and Guy Pearce deserves a lot of credit for his work in this film.
Even the minor characters are great; however, the most impressive minor character is James Cromwell as Captain Dudley Smith. This man is EVIL. Ruthless and cold, Cromwell effortlessly turns in a tour du force performance as a despicable, cold-hearted villain. I'll admit I was shocked to see him pull off the role so well; I had a mental picture of Mr. Cromwell as the gentle farmer in "Babe" before watching "L.A. Confidential". . . . wow. James Cromwell definitely has incredible talent and range.
`L.A. Confidential' has a distinct dark side to it; it's certainly not a film for everyone. It is, however, an undeniably sharp, clever, and stylish film, one that won't easily be forgotten . . . and will probably demand being watched more than once. One of the best films of 1997. Grade: A