the seasoned capt .
dudley smith
( james cromwell ) questions his new protege , ed exley ( guy pearce ) about his political views when it comes to police work .
"
would you plant evidence to get a conviction if you knew the person to be guilty ?
would you shoot a man in the back if you knew that it was the only way to make sure he got what he deserved ?
" exley , squeaky clean , innocent , and pent with the desire to perform his new duties with integrity and honesty quickly answers with a pointed ' no . ' stunned , smith pleads ,
" then , for the love of god , do n't be a detective .
"
la confidential is a dandy piece of filmmaking
that brings us back to the classic times of hollywood in the 50s .
organized crime was the biggest concern , corruption existed everywhere , and every cop had his own way of getting the job done .
there was " hollywood " jack vincennes ( kevin spacey ) who gets most of his information from the editor of a sleazy tell - all / show - all tabloid , sid hudgeons ( danny devito ) .
sporting dark sunglasses and a white sports coat , he is n't afraid to flash his tinseltown style .
detective bud white ( russell crowe ) has only a narrow - minded view of the law , and he uses excessive force to exact his unique kind of interrogation and brutal justice .
and then there is golden boy exley , wide - eyed and ambitious but extremely naive .
a horrible multiple murder begins to draw these three men together , each of whom become inexorably connected in their search for truth , action , and personal vindication .
almost immediately , an arrest is made .
but something does n't seem quite right .
new developments become sinuous as the story begins to draw us deeper into the labyrinth of corruption and crime within the department .
suspicion and questions begin to mount .
odd alliances are created .
and as layers of the truth become revealed , the story grows more complex and intriguing by the moment .
when the mystery expands , we see other seemingly guilty characters enter the lives of these three cops , including a high - priced hooker ( kim basinger ) and a shady millionaire ( david strathairn ) .
all of the characters ' levels of involvement are not immediately clear .
we watch with riveted fascination to learn more about why they are there and their stake in the case .
we sense a cross - pollination of clues that brings us , the audience , closer to the truth .
we hope that the three detectives can throw away their spite for one another and can pull their resources together in order to untangle the intricately created web of mystery .
absorbing and affecting , this movie has all the necessary ingredients to create a terrific gourmet serving of film noir .
it boasts mysterious figures in control , double - crosses , hard information from sleazy sources , dirty politicians , corrupt cops , haunting women , and hard - nosed cops experiencing moral ambiguity .
the underlying mystery is compelling .
the look and feel of the movie is gorgeous .
the entire cast is crisp and wonderful to watch
( i would n't be surprised if cromwell received an oscar nomination for his performance ) . and ,
the dialogue is rich and memorable .
the best line of the movie is spoken when a key player dispenses advice to one of the detectives unsure of what to do .
" do n't start trying to do the right thing , boy - o , " says he .
"
you have n't had the practice . "
" l . a . confidential ' ' triumphantly achieves the rare gift of complexity and coherence while satisfying our desire for a good old - fashioned movie .
Output: P