C+ Movie Review
Review by Robert Bell
When watching corrupt cop movies, or more specifically
Street Kings, various questions come to mind, like: Is there a specific casting agency that specializes in gangsta hookers? Do police chiefs in three thousand dollar suits really say things like "trippin?" Are all troubled cops alcoholics? Is there anything edgy about airplane-serving sized Smirnoff? When did the F-word become so versatile? It's really quite a shame that questions like these, and a bevy of others, find themselves at the forefront of an interesting analysis of systemic corruption and varying degrees of morality.
Street Kings is an edgy and cleverly crafted exploration of corruption, redemption and varying shades of grey with hints of Ouroboros. The plot twists, gunplay and appropriately washed out palette should keep the key adult male demo engaged throughout. It's just unfortunate that the film has absolutely no sense of humor and takes itself so seriously. This is a dick-in-hand man's movie to an unintentionally amusing degree.
Tom Ludlow (Keanu Reeves) is a veteran LAPD officer with a solid, yet controversial, track record. Increased ambiguity in his role as law enforcer has led him to alcoholism and a moral crossroads. Luckily his Captain, Jack Wander (Forest Whitaker) and other squad members (John Corbett, Jay Mohr, and Amaury Nolasco) always have his back, even when he shoots unarmed men.
Meanwhile Ludlow's ex-partner, Terrence Washington (Terry Crews), is creating problems for Tom and his crew by exposing some of their secrets. After a series of unfortunate events, Tom finds himself in the middle of a conspiracy that may be just a little too easy to walk away from.
The overall didactics of the film are the strong point. Yes, Street Kings is essentially another corrupt cop movie, but it has something interesting to say. It explores how one might adapt to a system that is inherently damaged without conscious choice. When the status quo is morally defunct, how does one find morality within that? And if they do find it, where does that leave them? The film suggests that everyone is bad in their own way. It also explores how attempts to escape a problematic system are ultimately redundant, as the cyclic nature of human behaviour makes it a moot point.
The script by James Ellroy (LA Confidential) and Kurt Wimmer (Ultraviolet) is a mixed bag. While the actual story is well crafted, the dialogue is often amusing and characters are somewhat clichéd. Street Kings is so desperate to be edgy that everyone winds up with a tough talking street vernacular. While this is believable to a certain degree, the film overdoes it, as much of the street cop exposition feels forced and hackneyed. Aside from Chris Evans' and Hugh Laurie's characters, there isn't a great deal to distinguish the other police officers, detectives, or captains, as they all seem to foster similar belief systems and share the same vocabulary.
Acting throughout is generally favorable, most surprisingly by Reeves. He plays the stock alcoholic police officer in moral crisis quite well, mainly due to his trademark stoicism, which has been to his detriment in past films. Here it works well while integrated with his rage. He manages to command many scenes that require him to be an intimidating force, which is no easy task. Forest Whitaker on the other hand, turns in a bizarre and unconvincing performance. It's unclear what he was going for, but he struggles in delivering slang and overacts at inconvenient moments.
Street Kings will likely find an audience and a following. The lack of female characters in the film that aren't prostitutes suggests that this following will be male. There are some issues left to think about after the credits roll, but there are also many things to laugh about. It's hard to take a film seriously that is so convinced of its own importance.
