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 L.A. Confidential 

What grade would you give this film?
A 91%  91%  [ 29 ]
B 9%  9%  [ 3 ]
C 0%  0%  [ 0 ]
D 0%  0%  [ 0 ]
F 0%  0%  [ 0 ]
Total votes : 32

 L.A. Confidential 
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College Boy Z

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Post L.A. Confidential
L.A. Confidential

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L.A. Confidential is a 1997 American film based on James Ellroy's 1990 novel of the same title, the third book in his L.A. Quartet. Both the book and the film tell the story of a group of LAPD officers in the 1950s, and the intersection of police corruption and Hollywood celebrity. The film adaptation was produced and directed by Curtis Hanson and co-written by Hanson and Brian Helgeland.

At the time, Australian actors Guy Pearce and Russell Crowe were relatively unknown in North America, and one of the film's backers, Peter Dennett, was worried about the lack of established stars in the lead roles. However, he supported Hanson's casting decisions and this gave the director the confidence to approach Kevin Spacey, Kim Basinger, and Danny DeVito.

Critically acclaimed, the film holds a 99% rating at Rotten Tomatoes with 82 out of 83 reviews positive and average rating of 8.6 out of 10, as well as an aggregated rating of 90% based on 28 reviews on Metacritic. It was nominated for nine Academy Awards and won two, Basinger for Best Actress in a Supporting Role and Hanson and Helgeland for Best Screenplay - Adapted.


Seen it, but need to watch it again. Didn't get a good first viewing (outside reasons)...


Mon Jul 04, 2005 2:10 pm
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Post Re: L.A. Confidential
Zingaling wrote:
Seen it, but need to watch it again. Didn't get a good first viewing (outside reasons)...

lol can't believe there wasn't a thread about this before... anyways I saw this when I was around 12 and don't remember much except for the ending but from what I remember I liked it... B + but I will watch it again one day and perhaps change my grade.


Mon Jul 04, 2005 2:15 pm
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An amazing movie.

A


Mon Jul 04, 2005 2:19 pm
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A. One of the handful of very top movies of the 90s.


Mon Jul 04, 2005 2:49 pm
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Loved it.

A-


Mon Jul 04, 2005 3:11 pm
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Maverikk wrote:
Loved it.

A-


is the - because Russell Crowe was in it?

I think I remember you having a problem with him.


Mon Jul 04, 2005 3:40 pm
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Post 
A great movie

Here is some of the great cast.

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kevin Spacey .... Sgt. Jack Vincennes
Russell Crowe .... Officer Wendell 'Bud' White
Guy Pearce .... Det. Lt. Edmund Jennings Exley
James Cromwell .... Capt. Dudley Liam Smith
Kim Basinger .... Lynn Bracken
Danny DeVito .... Sid Hudgens
David Strathairn .... Pierce Morehouse Patchett
Ron Rifkin .... Dist. Atty. Ellis Loew
.
.
.
.
.
.


Mon Jul 04, 2005 3:42 pm
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A/A+


Excellent movie, in my opinion the best to ever have been nominated for the Best Picture oscar. Ranges high in my all-time Top 20, maybe even my all-time Top 10. The film nouir style is very very well-recreated. The cast is a blast. Spacey, Crowe, Pierce, Basinger, De Vito and Cromwell make up the best ensemble I have ever seen in a movie. Great plot, great acting. A thriller as flawless as they get. A must-see for every film fan. As much as I like Titanic, this one deserved the est Picture Oscar.

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Tue Jul 05, 2005 11:12 pm
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Best of the rest, and that's saying something for the last truly memorable year in film.

L.A. Confidential isn't just a revisitation, its a complete re-envisioning of 50's pulp and noir. The timing, violence, and certain edgyness to the film were quite contemporary, on the other hand the aesthetics and characters were all retro. Rounding out the already full body was a consistent, well thought out timeless detective story of city corruption. The fact that three men play pivotal, and interweaving roles in the film rather than one (or multiple foloowing the same route of detection) adds to the suspense, the dialogue, and the rewarding outcome.

Thrilling, visually pleasing, hopefully this movie will go down in memory as the great it deserves to be, as well as stimulate further exploration of this genre.

A+


Wed Jul 06, 2005 12:15 am
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Goldie wrote:
is the - because Russell Crowe was in it?

I think I remember you having a problem with him.


I saw it and bought it before I had a problem with him. It's great, it's just personal taste reasons that made me give it an A- instead of an A.


Wed Jul 06, 2005 12:18 am
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What's funny is that two of the main actors in this distinctly American tale, Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce, are Australian.


Wed Jul 06, 2005 12:19 am
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Libs wrote:
What's funny is that two of the main actors in this distinctly American tale, Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce, are Australian.


I think the casting of these two actors is what makes the movie work. They were unknown at the time to most American audiences so we had no preconceived notions. Imagine if Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise had been cast instead and you would have a totally different movie. Kevin Spacey also gives a great performance. While Kim Basinger was good, was she really Oscar worthy? I don't know.

A great movie that I rate an A.


Thu Aug 04, 2005 7:41 am
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College Boy Z

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Forgot to comment on this one...

It's excellent, though I wouldn't quite rank it as the best film of the 90's. The performances were superb, the story was compelling; just an all-around great film. It's tough to say whether this one or Titanic deserved that Best Picture award, but it's close. A-


Thu Aug 04, 2005 2:04 pm
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Hm... just got finished watching this and I'm a little bit underwhelmed.

Don't know about a grade but I did enjoy it, wouldn't consider it one of my favorites just yet.

Kim Basinger though... She was good and all but how the hell did she win an Oscar for this? I'd say Julianne Moore in Boogie Nights was far more deserving...


Last edited by publicenemy#1 on Wed Sep 07, 2005 11:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.



Wed Sep 07, 2005 10:01 pm
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I agree Kim Basinger gave one of the poorer performances in the movie. All three male leads were just incredible, with Guy Pearce being the best.


Wed Sep 07, 2005 10:46 pm
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A

L.A. Confidential is a bona fide masterpiece. We don't get many of those these days; we need to treasure it.

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Thu Sep 08, 2005 12:26 am
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xiayun wrote:
I agree Kim Basinger gave one of the poorer performances in the movie. All three male leads were just incredible, with Guy Pearce being the best.


I agree that Basinger wasn't as good as the male leads, not even as good as James Cromwell. As the best performance out of the whole movie, however, I'd pick Russell Crowe.

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Thu Sep 08, 2005 6:47 am
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Great Film! I love Crowe and to me, his character was very interesting. I personally did not see the Capt in charge of all the murders. I love how in the end everything ties togethor, but for some reason I got annoyed by the Lt. Also, Crowe got the girl in the end, so props to him. What a ride. Need to watch it again, even thoughI watched it two days ago. I was a little bit confused with everything, with Patchett and such. A+

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Sun Jul 30, 2006 7:29 pm
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Hmm.... pretty much agree with the praise.... a near masterpiece.

****

(out of 4)


Sun Jul 30, 2006 8:18 pm
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The best film of 1997 and one of the 10 best from the 90s, a film that got overshadowed by the titanic hype, but this movie deserved the big oscars.

****/****

Its also one of the most rewatchable films for me.


Sun Jul 30, 2006 11:26 pm
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People say that this reminds them of Chinatown, I disagree. I think it reminds me more of Tequila Sunrise. Both have confusing plots, both are film noir in a way and both are richly acted and very well written. What I enjoyed most about this was the excellent performances of Spacey, Pearce and Crowe. All three carried out their roles superbly. When Crowe( Bud White ) was mad ( which was quite a bit ) you could feel his anger. It was written all over his face so that when he lashes out you understand why. Spacey ( Vinsensse ) was a bit of a hotdog in the film but he slowly changes and eventually doesn't like what he sees in the mirror. He also has one of the key scenes in the film when he discovers the main culprit. When he utters the name of the man that supposedly killed Pearce's father, that gave me chills. It was such a well written scene and carried out beautifully by Spacey. I admired Pearce's character ( Ed Exley ). He was not so much a political cronie as he did what he felt was right, all the time. He had integrity and he never wanted to jeapordize that, for any reason. That is why at the conclusion of the film I was left feeling strange when the denoument carried out the way it did. Pearce shoots the bad guy as he walking away. He didn't defend himself in the line of duty, but he killed a man that deserved to die. This man was a cop killer, a murderer, a rapist and a man who thought he was above the law. Does that make it right to shoot him? I'm sure we all think so, but for Pearce to shoot him would have taken alot. Asking moral questions the way the film did was one of its great strengths.

As for the comparison with Titanic. Titanic was a superb film that did everything right and deserved to win everything that it did. These are completely different kinds of movies and Titanic got its just rewards. Just because a film moves a little slowly and has film noir written all over it, it does not mean that it is a better movie than a fantasy that touches your heart. That was also a problem in 81 and 82 when the tables were turned and fantasy ( Raiders of the Lost Ark and ET) lost out to dramatics ( Chariots of Fire and Gandhi. I am glad that the academy has learned to recognize movies like Titanic. To me it was worthy of best picture and best director and the musical score in that film should have won as well. Enough about that.

What I can't understand for the life of me is how Basinger won Best Supporting Actress. She had what, thirty seconds of screen time? Her character was well played but I have seen her character a hundred times before. So that irks me, almost as much as the fact that none of the males won an Oscar. Spacey and Crowe each could have been up for best actor and Pearce could have been up for best actor or best supporting actor. Hell, Cromwell could have been nominated as well. All I know is someone should have won an acting award in this film besides Basinger. That was a mercy award to me.

I really did enjoy this film although I think it is over rated quite a bit. It had me interested and intrigued and it left me asking myself questions at the conclusion. But I just don't think it is as great as everyone says it is.

7.5/10

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Mon Jul 31, 2006 6:46 am
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Awesome, amazing, spectacular movie. Basinger rules.

A


Wed Aug 02, 2006 8:22 pm
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15 A's and one B. Wow!

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Wed Aug 02, 2006 8:33 pm
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Dr. Lecter wrote:
15 A's and one B. Wow!


Its THAT good

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Wed Aug 02, 2006 8:55 pm
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Amer wrote:
Dr. Lecter wrote:
15 A's and one B. Wow!


Its THAT good


Yup

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Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:13 pm
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