|
| Bad Lieutenant |
|
 (10/10)
|
Runtime: 96 M |
| Public Rating: 7.25 (16 votes) |
Director: Abel Ferrera |
MPAA Rating:  |
| Genre: Drama |
Year: 1992 |
| Writer(s): Zoe Lund and Abel Ferrera |
| Distributor: 1 |
| Reviewed by: Aaron Graham |
| |
Harvey Keitel gives his greatest performance as 'Lieutenant' a truly bad cop spiralling out of control, living life with escapist moments with prostitutes and liquor. We're not told much about this character, except what we can make out for ourselves.
He's a middle class cop with a cocaine addict, and penchant for doing the 'wrong' thing. He's got a gambling problem, drinks far too much, sleeps with hookers, and in one harrowing scene emotionally rapes two young girls.
We're told just enough to judge this character when the new setup begins: A nun is raped and the Lieutenant goes to the hospital. It seems the nun's forgiven these truly awful criminals and won't give the cops the names of the rapists.
The lieutenant, needless to say, is completely shocked and cannot believe the nun.
He overhears the nun in confession, and finds out the names of the boys and in a great simple ending is capable of some forgiveness.
We can see Keitel losing himself in this madness, holding his language in front of the nurse, screaming at Jesus asking forgiveness. He just wants to start over, he knows he's bad and knows far too well how horrible a person he really is.
The movie is powerful to say the least, but not for the squeamish as Ferrera's movies rarely are. You'll find yourself uncomfortable for most of the movie, but that's Ferrera's purpose: To tell horrible, disgusting but unfortunately true to life stories that would otherwise go untold.
Fun fact: Martin Scorsese has said that he wanted his own "The Last Temptation Of Christ" (co-starring Harvey Keitel as Judas Iscariot) to make you feel the way this movie does.
Ferrera also pays compliment to Scorsese, as he uses the classic 50's standard "Pledging My Love" by Johnny Ace as the Lieutenant's anthem. Scorsese and Keitel both used this exact same song in a sequence in "Mean Streets" (1973).The film has a rating of NC-17, but there is an R cut out on home video with a few trims.
|
 Printable Version
|
Do you agree/disagree with this review of Bad Lieutenant? Let your opinions be heard in our forum.
|
Buy the Poster of Bad Lieutenant (Click Here)
|
|
|
|
