In a time when it seems that every other movie makes some claim to being a film noir, LA Confidential is the real thing--a gritty, sordid tale of sex, scandal, betrayal and corruption of all sorts (police, political, press--and, of course, very personal) in 1940s Hollywood. The Oscar-winning screenplay is actually based on several titles in James Ellroy's series of chronological thriller novels (including the title volume, The Big Nowhere and White Jazz)--a compelling blend of LA history and pulp fiction that has earned it comparisons to the greatest of all Technicolour noir films, Chinatown.
Kim Basinger richly deserved her Supporting Actress Oscar for her portrayal of a conflicted femme fatale; unfortunately, her male costars are so uniformly fine that they may have canceled each other out with the Academy voters: Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, Kevin Spacey and James Cromwell play LAPD officers of varying stripes. Pearce's character is a particularly intriguing study in Hollywood amorality and ambition, a strait-laced "hero" (and son of a departmental legend) whose career goals outweigh all other moral, ethical and legal considerations. If he's a good guy, it's only because he sees it as the quickest route to a promotion. --Jim Emerson
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0
"It'll look like justice. That's what the man got." Curtis Hanson has managed to direct a film which captures the late 1940's in both style and spirit. Often films depicting the glamourous side of this era immerse themselves too much in the styles and fashions of the time, rendering the actual characters superfluous to the movie. Not here though - the characters drive the film, blending in perfectly with the directing style swaying effortlessly to capture the gritty and the classic-Hollywoodesque, the guy has done his homework. Risks were taken by... more info
Brilliant Fantastic storyline and an amazing cast all played to perfection. I can't believe I've only just seen this film! Well worth the money as its gripping and incredibly entertaining. Anyone who says this is a bad film shouldn't be allowed to watch them.
RUBISH BORING AND RUBISH , DON'T BOTHER. I DIDN'T EVEN INTERESTED TO FINISH THE FILM. NOT SEXY, OR GOOD STORY. WASTE YOUR TIME
Phenomenal I have watched this film about 50 times and it's never boring. From Curtis Hanson's direction, Brian Helgeland's script and the performances of the three leads, this is perfect in almost every way. Each time I watch it I spot more subtleties that I hadn't noticed before. The story is just about perfect, and the fact that Hollywood doesn't churn out more thrillers like this is a major disappointment. This is probably the best performance of Russel Crowe's career, or Kevin Spacey's come to that. Guy Pearce is... more info
![L.A. Confidential [1997]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51D9Q6DV7HL._SL160_.jpg)
