L.A. Confidential (1997)

User Rating:

8.4/10   

Director:

Curtis Hanson

Writers (WGA):

James Ellroy (novel)
Brian Helgeland (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

19 September 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Off the record, on the QT, and very hush-hush...

Plot:

A shooting at an all night diner is investigated by three LA policemen in their own unique ways.

Plot Keywords:

Hidden In Crawl Space | Voice Over | Comic Relief | Drug Dealing | Journalist

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 68 wins & 43 nominations

Cast

Kevin Spacey	...	Det. Sgt. Jack Vincennes
Russell Crowe	...	Officer Wendell 'Bud' White
Guy Pearce	...	Det. Lt. Edmund Jennings 'Ed' Exley
James Cromwell	...	Capt. Dudley Liam Smith
Kim Basinger	...	Lynn Margaret Bracken
David Strathairn	...	Pierce Morehouse Patchett
Danny DeVito	...	Sid Hudgens
Graham Beckel	...	Det. Sgt. Richard Alex 'Dick' Stensland
Paul Guilfoyle	...	Meyer Harris 'Mickey' Cohen
Ron Rifkin	...	Dist. Atty. Ellis Loew
Matt McCoy	...	Brett Chase
Paolo Seganti	...	Johnny Stompanato
Sandra Taylor	...	Mickey Cohen's Mambo Partner
Steve Rankin	...	Officer Arresting Mickey Cohen
Elisabeth Granli	...	Mickey Cohen's Mambo Partner

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence and language, and for sexuality.

Runtime:

138 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Korea:18 | USA:R (certificate #35218) | Philippines:R-18 | Brazil:18 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Belgium:KT | Canada:18A | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Germany:16 (w) | Hong Kong:IIB | Netherlands:12 (original rating) | Netherlands:16 (DVD rating) | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:M18 (DVD rating) | Singapore:R(A) (original rating) | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18

Filming Locations:

1714 Gramercy Place, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Monarchy Enterprises B.V.

Trivia:

Body count: 30

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: In one shot, when Bud White is dangling the D.A. out the window, the actor's safety cable is visible.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Sid Hudgens: [voiceover] Come to Los Angeles! The sun shines bright, the beaches are wide and inviting, and the orange groves stretch as far as the eye can see. There are jobs aplenty, and land is cheap. Every working man can have his own house, and inside every house, a happy, all-American family. You can have all this, and who knows... you could even be discovered, become a movie star... or at least see one. Life is good in Los Angeles... it's paradise on Earth." Ha ha ha ha. That's what they tell you, anyway.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Girls Next Door: Here's Looking at You, Hef (#2.1)" (2006)

Soundtrack:

The Lady Is A Tramp

Tour de Force

This is the ultimate movie on the corruptness of the police force during the 1950's. No one is going to make a better movie than LA Confidential, the cast is perfect, the direction is superb, the screenplay is amazing, the choice of music, the graphic brutality, the not so fine line between good and evil.

When I saw this in the theatres, I came out of the theatre and couldn't say anything because I was awed. And I was amazed by how wonderful Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce were, I had never heard of them before, so I didn't know what to expect, but now I have two new favorite actors. And I couldn't believe that Russell was a New Zealander and Guy was an Aussie. They had great American accents. And of course Kevin Spacey was superb as always.

Any way, this is an awesome movie, go rent it if you have not seen it.