Product: Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans [Blu-ray] (2009)
Rating: 5.0
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans Review
BAD LIEUTENANT: PORT OF CALL NEW ORLEANSSTARRING: Nicolas Cage, Eva Mendes, Val Kilmer, Xzibit, Brad Dourif, Jennifer Coolidge, Shawn Hatosy, Denzel Whitaker, Fairuza Balk, Tom Bower, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Irma P. Hall, Shea Whigham and Michael ShannonWRITTEN BY: William M. Finkelstein; inspired by the previous film Bad Lieutenant, written by Victor Argo, Paul Calderon, Abel Ferrara and Zoe LundDIRECTED BY: Werner HerzogRated: RGenre: DramaRelease Date: 20 November 2009Nicolas Cage delivers his most daring performance since his Oscar winning role in Leaving Las Vegas. Much like his character in that film, Terence in The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, finds himself wondering down a dark path in a tornado of self destruction. He's a police officer who also happens to be a drug addict and a criminal.There is no one big case that Terence is assigned to in this film and that is due mainly to the film's setting: a post Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. Terence is a man who finds much to do with his new found freedom of working in the slums of a city brought nearly to its knees.He forces himself onto women, gambles heavily, he steals drugs from both drug dealers and evidence lockers - taking them while on duty, and he cheats on his prostitute of a girlfriend. Few actors could have taken a premise as disturbing as this and a character as twisted as Terence and made both not only tolerable but likeable. Cage is an actor more than capable.It's worth mentioning without disclosing in full detail, how good this film is at having us believe this man would be able to get away with these things. He is constantly on the verge of being found out, and yet somehow amidst his coked out madness, he is able to use his police detective wit to outsmart his counterparts and the criminals he comes into contact with who want him dead. Naturally this makes for good suspense and kept me intrigued throughout.The film is incredibly well written and directed and strewn with good supporting top-notch actors who include Eva Mendes, Val Kilmer, Xzibit, Brad Dourif, Jennifer Coolidge, Michael Shannon and Shawn Hatosy. Even so, it is not a film that will appeal to audiences in the masses, thus its limited theatrical release. But for any true Nic Cage fan or for anyone who can find the entertainment value in something so depressing and sinister, I can't recommend it more.