"...And very hush-hush!"

Rating: 9/10 (17 September 2007)

Among other things, what most amazes me about "L.A. Confidential" is that the film is just as relevant today as it was ten years ago. I don't know if the filmmaker's objective was to make a statement, but the piece, set in the 50's makes one that still bothers people everyday: the lack of justice in this unfair world. It does it with some clichéd moments and with the necessary amount of action; but with an intelligence uncommonly used these days.
"You have to think while watching this film", my friend Matias said to me; angry, stopping me every time I said something. Actually, you don't really have to pay close attention during "L.A. Confidential", because it's such a kind film that it expertly explains everything in a couple of crucial moments; but if you choose to follow it step by step, it will be a tough ride for you, viewer.
David Fincher's "Zodiac" premiered this year and it is, ten years later, a classy version of Curtis Hanson's violent and rough way of presenting his film. Yes, it's not the same story and Fincher's movie is set in San Francisco, but what "L.A. Confidential" essentially shares with it is the genre connection (besides the closeness in periods of time). If you watch "Zodiac" and afterwards "L.A. Confidential", you'll notice the elegance of the first and the less careful conditions of the second; where the streets are predominant and the rules don't matter so much.
Only one guy follows them closely. He is Edmund Exley (Guy Pearce), an ascending policeman who plays it by the book and would even tolerate the rejection of his colleagues to get where he wants. Bud White (Russel Crowe) is the opposite, with 'brutality' as a second name and a weakness for abused women; and Jack Vincennes (Kevin Spacey) stands in the middle, resolving cases but getting paid for it by a reporter (Danny DeVito) who wants to be the first to know every scoop; in a time where fifty dollars meant a lot of money.
These three men (with names presented in big letters and that we never forget) are tangled up together in the resolution of a case in which nothing is what it seems. Of course that the men as I sort of stereotypically describe them, are not what they seem either; as almost everything in this Los Angeles where you "can't live if you're born without wings". This phrases and other are found in Curtis Hanson and Brian Helgeland's beautiful screenplay, based on the novel by James Ellroy.
I think what makes "L.A. Confidential" such an effective movie in the way that you are filled with adrenaline and excitement can be explained in two parts. The first one: the combination between Helgeland, one of the most talented and versatile writers of contemporary cinema; and Hanson, a versatile director who's proved to be committed with every kind of genre. This decade, he's made a real-life tale ("Wonder Boys"), a family story ("In her Shoes"), a music underdog tale with rapper Eminen ("8 Mile") and a rom-com ("Lucky You"). The first three are very good pieces, the fourth I still have to watch it. This combination of versatility paved a way for something original and fresh.
We don't get movies like "L.A. Confidential" today. At least not in that genre, with that intelligence and with those performancesThe character actor Kevin Spacey; so convincing, so powerful and relaxed, so intense, so himself. Would you pay attention to his face? Please, it's unique. Guy Pearce, also so full of character and unique as well; and Russell Crowe, I haven't written about him but he's great and I'll write more when I write about "Gladiator" someday.
There are some more actors that I haven't mentioned, but I believe pleasure in cinema arrives when you watch things you don't previously know or expectTry to make of "L.A. Confidential" one of those movies, because it was for me; and it was great.