Product: Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans [Blu-ray] (2009)
Rating: 4.0
Fish dreams
In Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, Nicholas Cage plays a quintessential Cage character as the self-destructive coke-head Terence McDonagh. His investigation into the drug related murder of an entire family and his need to fuel his habit takes him into some odd places, his path crossing those of even odder characters. And iguanas. The supporting cast supplies familiar faces and the secondary plots that converge into the surprising and gleeful conclusion.McDonagh's plummet to rock bottom during the dark and sordid first half of this movie is difficult to watch, but is the necessary set up for the astonishing events of the second. Val Kilmer, Jennifer Coolidge, Brad Dourif and Eva Mendes turn in fine performances as the secondary characters fueling McDonagh's quandaries and dilemmas. As McDonagh's character is further revealed, we see that he's more than the first half would indicate and some very dark humor begins to surface.I've been struggling with what to say about Bad Lieutenant. Describing it as Robert Altman making a movie with the Coen brothers gives a sense of its surreal noir-ness, but isn't fair to Mr. Herzog. I wouldn't describe this as a fun movie, or even a pleasant one, and inside Herzog's head is an interesting place to be if you don't have to spend a lot of time there. If you can make it through the dancing soul, it's worth sticking with this movie to the end, though not everyone will want to. Three and a half stars, rounded up to four.