New at BOP: Review: Matrix Resurrections Movie Review: Moonfall Movie Reviews: Scream The #1 Movie in America November Forecast The Many Saints of Newark October Forecast New Trivia Question All site updates Share & Save   Tweet Print this column

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans

I don’t think this is the kind of remake that will discredit the original. It is more of an inspired retelling set in a different place and time. I have to say, the opening scene with the snake in the water is quite effective. The slithery reptile swims freely as water rises steadily inside a prison. I found myself looking for metaphors every time an animal came into focus. There is a crocodile taking in the scene of a freeway accident before walking away uncaring. Two lizards or iguanas seem to get into a psychedelic trance while the Lieutenant himself appears to be sober.

It is established that Lieutenant Terence McDonagh has chronic back pain, which becomes the excuse for drug abuse. He is more "bad back" lieutenant than just bad. No such explanation was found necessary with the original Bad Lieutenant. Every time he seems to commit something bad he counters that with a good act – an act of kindness. It doesn’t look like he instigates the sexual favors, either. Nicolas Cage’s Bad Lieutenant is more of an apprentice, a reluctant wannabe to the original Bad Lieutenant, Harvey Keitel. Lieutenant McDonagh is not bad by choice. There is no big reason given for his gambling addiction other than the assumption that it feeds his first craving. The sequence with the football player is the only instance where he is in full blown evil mode. The football player’s performance is equally convincing. I was surprised with the insignificant and small role that Michael Shannon is given in this movie.

Sudden Impact

Everything about this movie screams '80s – be it the background score, the vigilante theme or just the presence of Dirty Harry. We are back in San Francisco to trace the antics of another crazy cop. This edition of Dirty Harry is directed by Clint Eastwood himself. Quickly into the movie, punks get routinely manhandled by Messrs. Callahan, Smith and Wesson. A court hearing, a restaurant heist, giving a don a heart attack, head butting with superiors, refusing vacation, getting shot at, hitting back, the rudimentary car chase (in a retirement home bus) are all pieces in a day in the life of Harry Callahan. The highest-grossing of the Dirty Harry film series, Sudden Impact made $67 million at the box office. The story this time revolves around a female vigilante avenging rape and assault on her and her sister. The drama shifts to San Paolo and by way of poetic justice to the scene of the central crime. The end is a little too convenient and might have been different if it were done today.

Ended up with…

Whilst checking out the above movies, I invariably end up fattening my instant watch queue with some new additions. These go into my “Ended up with…” list and the plan is to watch them during the week ahead. NetFlix keeps tempting me to move each one of them to the top of the queue but I resist. These are movies that I plan to check out in the days ahead.

Far from Heaven

This has been in my list for a long time and I added it knowing that it has well received performances from Julianne Moore and Dennis Quaid. As a 11th hour act, I watched it with my wife just before it went off instant watch on NetFlix. Reviews due next week.

The Girl Who Played with Fire

Unlike Far from Heaven, I added this movie, the second in the Millennium series, the day it came up for instant watching. As I was still working on the book I didn’t watch it immediately but can’t wait to see the screen adaptation of a great crime thriller.

Continued:       1       2