25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Cool movie, December 8, 2008
I agree with the other review in that the story line is nothing out of the ordinary. Typical New York good cop, bad cop storyline. This is why I didn't give it four stars but I have to give a lot of credit to the actors especially Collin Farrell. He is brilliant in this movie. I have to say, he nailed his performance to the tee. So the story goes: A family of cops, the dad (Jon Voight (Francis Sr.), his two sons (Edward Norton (Ray),Noah Emmerich (Francis Jr.) and their brother in law (Collin Farrell (Jimmy). They were all after this drug dealer who killed four other cops. Ray was thrown in this wild goose chase only to find out that Jimmy was somehow involved. So Jimmy somehow framed Ray (can't spoil the movie too much), they were in this battle of Ray's words against Jimmy. The ending could've been better but overall, it is a pretty good movie. Worth watching on DVD.
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15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Old theme, compulsively addicting!, February 8, 2009
My husband and I both sat riveted to the screen, for the 130 minutes of raw action, that this film delivered. In fact, we were still discussing it the next day. Our conclusion is, that after seeing almost every 'good cop, bad cop' film available, this ranks among our top five. I'm really surprised at the 1 and 2 star reviews.
Yes, this theme has been overused, but it was the acting that made this production stand apart. It was superb! You can't help but become enmeshed with this Irish family of cops, spanning generations, who find themselves with colliding ethics. Their intense love and respect for one another is palpable and quite sad. Even when doing 'the right thing,' when confronting someone you love---particularly family, the feelings of betrayal are overwhelming and this was so well drawn out with these amazing characters.
Edward Norton's portrayal of the NYPD Detective (Ray) attempting to redeem himself for misuse of power previously, is gritty and intense. But, he's a damaged man; his behavior could be unpredictable. You can't wait to see him facing unimaginable choices on his road to redemption. One of his best roles, to date, IMHO.
Colin Farrell (Jimmy) did not disappoint as the very, very, bad boy, brother-in- law. He does bad, SOOOO well!
Police Commander, Noah Emmerich (Francis Jr.), tugs at your heart, as the older brother of Norton. He is facing the loss of his wife to cancer, while having to confront issues within himself of turning a blind eye to some of the behaviors of 'his boys,' allowing things to spiral out of control. How far have his professional ethics been tested?
John Voigt (Francis Sr.), the Patriarch of the family and a strong defender for maintaining the honor of the force, at all costs, was wonderful. It was good to see him with a piece of challenging work, for a change.
Be prepared that this film is quite violent, raw and played out on the streets of darkness, and despair. The violence and language is authentic, for those demanding realism, but not for those overly sensitive to such themes.
A word of advice. You need to pay close attention to this movie. There are many characters to keep up with, all with stories of their own. My only complaint was that the characters really had to be allowed to develop for a bit before I could keep them and their stories straight. But, it does begin to all come together, so be patient and give it a chance. You might just like it, too.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
This film is weak..., July 10, 2009
Technically speaking, this film was well-done. It had a certain dark atmospheric style that complemented this disturbing story. The acting was first-rate. I admit that I have not seen that many movies about bad cops ("Bad Lieutenant" comes to mind), but if I was a cop then I would be upset about this one. If our city cops are like this, the country is in serious trouble and well on its way to becoming like Mexico. We can all admire comraderie and standing up for each other, but the police "honor codes" of condoning and covering up criminal behavior are bound to cause a great deal of abuse and suffering. Essentially, they cause a police force to become no better than a mafia organization. None of the characters in the movie were sympathetic except for Francis Jr.'s dying wife. She was the only one who seemed to know the difference between right and wrong. In addition, the characters were not even interesting and had no style. (By comparison, Dirty Harry at least had a sense of humor.) Like other reviewers, I am surprised that actors of this caliber settled for these lame roles. The language used contained at least 50% profanity. A strong word now and then can enhance and reinforce emotional impact in adult situations, but when used so much the language just gets plain ugly. I suppose that the language these cops used was as ugly as their lives, the lives of corrupt, dishonest and dishonorable men. Ray was a smart guy and a competent investigator but he came across as a conflicted and weak character throughout the entire movie, and especially at the end. He resorted to using a weapon (a billiard ball) during a fist fight with Jimmy and then he let the mob seize Jimmy and beat him to death, without firing a single shot. He basically just stood there and watched. I was hoping that at the end these police officers would do the right thing - come clean and admit their mistakes, even if it cost them their jobs. That was the only honorable way out for them. It would make for a great story that would again teach us valuable lessons that the choice of this type of conduct always will come back to haunt in the end. Instead, there was a silly bar fist fight, a mob lynching and essentially a coverup to insure that business went on as usual. The police code of conduct in this movie was not to betray each other. This effectively made them betray the rest of us, the people that they are supposed to protect and serve. After watching this film, I resolved to watch the entire "Dirty Harry" series again to regain the respect for the police as a profession.
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