Street Kings (2008)

Director:

David Ayer

Writers (WGA):

James Ellroy (screenplay) and
Kurt Wimmer (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

11 April 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Their City. Their Rules. No Prisoners.

Plot:

Tom Ludlow is a veteran LAPD cop who finds life difficult to navigate after the death of his wife. When evidence implicates him in the execution of a fellow officer, he is forced to go up against the cop culture he's been a part of his entire career, ultimately leading him to question the loyalties of everyone around him. |

Plot Keywords:

Death | Lapd | Dead Wife | Black Cop | Police Harassment

Cast

Keanu Reeves	...	Detective Tom Ludlow
Forest Whitaker	...	Captain Jack Wander
Hugh Laurie	...	Captain James Biggs
Chris Evans	...	Detective Paul Diskant
Cedric the Entertainer	...	Scribble (as Cedric 'The Entertainer' Kyles)
Jay Mohr	...	Sgt. Mike Clady
Terry Crews	...	Detective Terrence Washington
Naomie Harris	...	Linda Washington
Common	...	Coates
Martha Higareda	...	Grace Garcia
John Corbett	...	Detective Dante Demille
Amaury Nolasco	...	Detective Cosmo Santos
Noel Gugliemi	...	Quicks (as Noel G.)
Michael Monks	...	Pathologist
Daryl Gates	...	The Chief (as Daryl F. Gates)
Clifton Powell	...	Sergeant Green
Angela Sun	...	Julie Fukashima
Kenneth Choi	...	Boss Kim
The Game	...	Grill
Cle Shaheed Sloan	...	Fremont (as Cle Sloan)
Walter Wong	...	Thug Kim
Garret Sato	...	Toilet Man (as Garret T. Sato)
Victor Kobayashi	...	Towel Man (as Victor E. Kobayashi)
Kerry Wong	...	Union Market Clerk (as Kerry Ph Wong)
Aaron MacPherson	...	Union Market Cop #1 (as Aaron Earl McPherson)
Paul Anthony Barreras	...	Union Market Cop #2
Dorian Logan	...	Beating Victim
Yonda Davis	...	Prostitute #1
Siobhan Parisi	...	Prostitute #2
Emilio Rivera	...	OG Vato
Michael D. Roberts	...	Older Black Man
Kami Jones	...	Black Woman
Jernard Burks	...	Money Shirt
Kevin Benton	...	Lt. Van Buren
Amy Dudgeon	...	Assistant D.A.
Genesis Codina	...	Little Mexican Girl
Michaela Pereira	...	News Anchor
Vance S. Bjorklund	...	Honor Guard Sergeant
Jaime Fitzsimons	...	Senior Captain
Kenyon Gilbert	...	Gang Banger
Joanne Chew	...	Park Twin #1
Kel Ann Hsieh	...	Park Twin #2 (as Kel-Ann Hsieh)
Patrick Gallagher	...	LAPD Captain
Kirstin Pierce	...	Clady's Wife
Kate Clarke	...	Demille's Girlfriend
Carlos Amezcua	...	Co-Anchor
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
David Ayer	...	NLR member in County Jail (uncredited)
Candice A. Buenrostro	...	Troubled teen (uncredited)
Daniel Van Dyke	...	LAPD Sergeant (uncredited)
Justin Rodgers Hall	...	Prison Guard (uncredited)
Eric Shackelford	...	News Cameraman (uncredited)
Emiliano Torres	...	Homie (uncredited)

Directed by
David Ayer

Writing credits (WGA)
James Ellroy		(screenplay) and
Kurt Wimmer		(screenplay) and
Jamie Moss		(screenplay)
James Ellroy		(story)

Produced by
Bruce Berman	....	executive producer
Lucas Foster	....	producer
Alexandra Milchan	....	producer
Arnon Milchan	....	executive producer
Erwin Stoff	....	producer
Julian Wall	....	associate producer
Michele Weisler	....	executive producer
Bob Yari	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Graeme Revell

Cinematography by
Gabriel Beristain		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Jeffrey Ford

Casting by
Mary Vernieu

Production Design by
Alec Hammond

Set Decoration by
Hilton Rosemarin

Costume Design by
Michele Michel

Makeup Department
Jennifer Bell	....	key hair stylist
Susan Germaine	....	hair department head
Michael Germain	....	key makeup artist
Dean Jones	....	special makeup effects artist
Starr Jones	....	special makeup effects artist
Nicole Michaud	....	special effects hair: American Make-up Effects
Timothy A. Miguel	....	additional makeup artist
Ken Niederbaumer	....	special makeup effects artist
Francisco X. Pérez	....	makeup department head
Liz Pisano	....	special effects hair stylist: American MUFX
Rick Stratton	....	tattoos
Alicia M. Tripi	....	key hair stylist
Soo-Jin Yoon	....	hair stylist (as Soo Jin Yoon)
Clint Zoccoli	....	sculptor/painter

Production Management
Joan Kelley Bierman	....	post-production supervisor
Isabel Henderson	....	post-production supervisor
Michele Weisler	....	unit production manager
Robert West	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Terry Ham	....	second assistant director
Jackie C. Lee	....	second second assistant director
R.A. Rondell	....	second unit director
Frederic Roth	....	first assistant director: second unit
Julian Wall	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Daril Alder	....	leadman
Richard Bloom	....	art department coordinator
Dominick Bruno	....	assistant property master (as Dominick R. Bruno)
Andrew Campbell	....	graphic designer
Charlie Campbell	....	assistant art director
Tim Caprarelli	....	set dresser (as Tim F. Caprarelli)
David Corral	....	greensman
Dameon Daniels	....	set dresser
Thomas W. Foster	....	construction medic
Miguel A. Garcia	....	set dresser
Andrew Garcia-Price	....	storyboard artist
Ray Garcia	....	set dresser
Sara Ghaffar	....	art department assistant
Michael A. Heath	....	prop paperwork
Al Hobbs	....	set designer
Gary B. Krakoff Jr.	....	construction foreman
Chris Langevin	....	assistant property master
Mark R. LaPresle	....	construction coordinator
Wayne Nycz	....	paint foreman
Caroline Perzan	....	set decoration buyer
Angela Simpson	....	construction estimator (as Angie Simpson)
Jesse Siono Jr.	....	stand-by painter (as Jesus M. Siono)
Mike Slattery	....	stage foreman
Hans Soto	....	stand-by greensman
Shawn Sykes	....	labor foreman
Gary Tuers	....	property master
Tom Waisanen	....	on-set dresser

Sound Department
Richard L. Anderson	....	sound editor
James Bolt	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Jim Bolt)
G.W. Brown	....	sound editor (as Greg Brown)
Derek Casari	....	adr engineer
Mark Coffey	....	first assistant sound editor
Steve Copley	....	foley mixer
Stacey Dodds	....	sound engineer
Lori Dovi	....	sound mixer
Kevin Dunigan	....	sound recordist
John P. Fasal	....	sound effects recordist (as John Paul Fasal)
Albert Gasser	....	sound effects editor
Craig Heath	....	sound recordist (as Craig 'Pup' Heath)
John Kwiatkowski	....	dialogue editor
Tom Lalley	....	sound re-recording engineer
Ross Levy	....	cable person
Craig MacLellan	....	assistant adr recordist
Piero Mura	....	sound designer
Piero Mura	....	supervising sound editor
Josephine Nericcio	....	assistant sound editor (as Josie Nericcio)
Josephine Nericcio	....	assistant sound editor
Rodrigo Ortiz-Parraga	....	sound engineer (as Rodrigo Ortiz)
Matt Patterson	....	sound recordist
Paul Pavelka	....	sound re-recording engineer
Dave Plowman	....	technical assistance
John Sievert	....	foley artist
David A. Smith	....	boom person (as David Allen Smith)
Eric Thompson	....	adr mixer
Lee R. Tucker	....	preview engineer (as Lee Tucker)
Elliot Tyson	....	sound re-recording mixer
Robert Ulrich	....	adr supervisor

Special Effects by
William Aldridge	....	special effects foreman (as Bill Aldridge)
Robert Cole	....	special effects technician (as Robert M. Cole)
Edward Gettis	....	special effects technician
Richard L. Hill	....	special effects technician (as Richard Hill)
James Lorimer	....	special effects technician
Stan Parks	....	special effects foreman
Michael Schorr	....	special effects technician
Bruno Van Zeebroeck	....	special effects coordinator (as Bruno Vanzeebroeck)
George Zamora	....	special effects technician (as George M. Zamora)

Visual Effects by
Jeff Barnes	....	production executive: CafeFX
Suzette Barnett	....	compositor
Danny Braet	....	digital effects supervisor
Matthew Collorafice	....	digital compositor
Rif Dagher	....	effects animation supervisor
Ante Dekovic	....	digital compositor
Steve Dellerson	....	visual effects
Pallavi Devabhaktuni	....	digital compositor: CafeFX
Thomas F. Ford IV	....	visual effects producer
Vicki Galloway-Weimer	....	visual effects executive producer: Cafe FX (as Vicki Galloway Weimer)
David Hochstadter	....	digital compositor: CafeFX
Jeremy Hunt	....	visual effects artist: Screaming Death Monkey
Les G. Jones	....	visual effects producer
Shant Jordan	....	compositing supervisor
Apirak Kamjan	....	matchmover: CafeFx
Erin L. Nelson	....	digital restoration
Desi Ortiz	....	visual effects managing editor: CafeFX
Mark Robben	....	digital compositor: At The Post
Wayne A. Shepherd	....	compositing supervisor: At The Post
Adam Stern	....	digital compositor: Cafe FX
Wilson Tang	....	digital restoration
Danny Torres	....	systems admistrator
Chris Watts	....	visual effects supervisor
O.D. Welch	....	production executive: CafeFX
Patrick Wolf	....	lead pipeline developer: CafeFX
Jason Michael Zimmerman	....	digital compositor
Philip Fraschetti	....	digital artist: At The Post (uncredited)

Stunts
Kenny Alexander	....	stunts
Robert Alonzo	....	stunts
Troy Brown	....	stunts
Joe Bucaro III	....	stunts (as Joey Bucaro)
Liisa Cohen	....	stunts
Clay Cullen	....	stunts (as Peter Clay Cullen)
Jeffrey J. Dashnaw	....	stunts (as Jeff Dashnaw)
Kevin Derr	....	stunts
Brian Duffy	....	stunts
Crystal Dyson	....	stunts
Annie Ellis	....	stunts
Kevin Foster	....	stunts
Mark Ginther	....	stunts
Tad Griffith	....	stunts
Mike Gunther	....	stunt double: Keanu Reeves
James M. Halty	....	stunts (as Jimmy Halty)
Riley Harper	....	stunts
Thomas Robinson Harper	....	stunts (as Thomas R. Harper)
John Hateley	....	stunts
Freddie Hice	....	stunts
Logan Holladay	....	stunts
Steve Holladay	....	stunts
Henry Kingi	....	stunts
Wayne King	....	stunts (as Wayne King Jr.)
Wayne King	....	stunts
Oakley Lehman	....	stunts
Efosa Otuomagie	....	stunts (as Efosa)
Chris Palermo	....	stunts (as Christopher Palermo)
Eddie Perez	....	stunts
Jason Rodriguez	....	stunts
Erik Rondell	....	stunts (as Erik L. Rondell)
R.A. Rondell	....	stunt coordinator
Debby Lynn Ross	....	stunts (as Debby Ross Rondell)
Michael Runyard	....	stunts
David Schultz	....	stunts
Courtney Schwartz	....	precision driver
Myke Schwartz	....	stunts
Kevin Scott	....	stunts
Ray Siegle	....	stunts (as Raymond Siegle)
Anthony C. Steere	....	stunts (as Tony Steere)
Jon Valera	....	stunts
Scott Workman	....	stunts
Keith Woulard	....	stunts
Danny Wynands	....	stunts (as Dan Wynands)

Camera and Electrical Department
Phil Allard	....	rigging electrician (as Phillip J. Allard II)
Michael D. Alvarez	....	additional second assistant camera
Steven Bernstein	....	director of photography: second unit
Noah Bishop	....	technocrane operator
Justin Blum	....	company grip
Rustie Burris	....	camera production assistant
Dan Carpluk	....	company grip
Steven D. Castaneda	....	rigging electrician (as Steve Castaneda)
Alan Cohen	....	first assistant camera: "a" camera
Marc Cole	....	Steadicam operator (as Marcis Cole)
Marc Cole	....	camera operator: "a" camera (as Marcis Cole)
Jeffrey A. Cook	....	electric
Jesse Crusing	....	additional best boy electric: second unit
Danny Eccleston	....	gaffer (as Daniel Eccleston)
Stephen M. Foss	....	dolly grip (as Stephen Foss)
Bert Gomez III	....	company grip
Jerry Gregoricka	....	rigging electrician
Barry Gross	....	gaffer: second unit
Craig Grossmueller	....	first assistant camera
Eric Guerin	....	second assistant camera: "a" camera (as Eric J. Guerin)
Miles Gutkin	....	grip
Allen Harker	....	electrician (as K. Allen Harker)
R. Dana Harlow	....	company grip (as Dana Harlow)
Adam Harrison	....	rigging best boy electric
Steve Harvey	....	electrician
Jay Herron	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Nate Johnson	....	electrician
Jeremiah Kent	....	second assistant camera: "b" camera
William Kent	....	rigging grip
Thomas E. Lee	....	best boy rigging grip
Bob Leitelt	....	key grip (as Robert Leitelt)
George Lozano Jr.	....	electrician
Bill Marti	....	additional second assistant camera
Frankie Martinez	....	electrician (as Francisco Martinez)
Diona Mavis	....	film loader (as Diona J. Mavis)
Daniel Page McDonough	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera (as Daniel P. McDonough)
Mike Moad	....	dolly grip
Glenn E. Moran	....	rigging gaffer
Merrick Morton	....	still photographer
Jesse Olivares	....	video assist
Joel A. Ruiz	....	rigging electric (as Joel Ruiz)
Mariana Sánchez de Antuñano	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera (as Marianna Sanchez)
Tom Schnaidt	....	camera operator: "b" camera (as Thomas Schnaidt)
Bill H. Schwocho	....	rigging grip
Mike Shaheen	....	video playback operator
Jonathan Sharpe	....	additional first assistant camera: "b" camera (as Jon Sharpe)
Charles Smith	....	key rigging grip
Scott Sprague	....	best boy electric
Mark T. Stockwell Sr.	....	rigging grip
Andrew Taylor	....	best boy grip (as Andy Taylor)
Dempsey Tillman	....	digital video assist operator
John Trapman	....	aerial director of photography
R. Gern Trowbridge	....	lighting console programmer
Joshua Turner	....	camera production assistant
Rod Weaver	....	gaffer: second unit
Scott Whitemore	....	company grip
Rick Whitfield	....	video playback advisor
Steven J. Winslow	....	aerial camera technician: wescam camera
R. Michael Yope	....	electrician (as Michael Yope)

Casting Department
Johnny Gidcomb	....	voice casting
Lindsay Graham	....	casting associate
Brandon Hemmerling	....	casting assistant
Eddie Mariano	....	extras casting coordinator

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Yvette Ammon	....	costumer
Christine Bean	....	assistant costume designer
Carlos Brown	....	costumer
Roberto Carneiro	....	set costumer
Anette Czagany	....	set costumer
Michelle Liu	....	costumer
Alma Magaña	....	set costumer
Robert E. Moore III	....	tailor
Bob Moore Jr.	....	set costumer (as Robert Moore)
Claudia Wick	....	costume supervisor
Kanani Wolf	....	set costumer
Leslie Schilling	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Jill Bogdanowicz	....	digital film colorist
Jason Fabbro	....	video colorist
Christopher J. Maldonado	....	editorial production assistant
April McMorris	....	digital intermediate producer
William Paley	....	assistant editor
Kiran Pallegadda	....	associate editor
Jim Passon	....	color timer
Everette Webber	....	digital conform and opticals

Music Department
Kotzman Cenda	....	scoring assistant (as Cenda Kotzmann)
Jan Chalipecký	....	conductor
Pavel Ciboch	....	music preparation
Mark Curry	....	score mixer
Mark Curry	....	score recordist
Boris Elkis	....	orchestrator
John Houlihan	....	music supervisor
Kevin Houlihan	....	music coordinator
Season Kent	....	music supervisor
Ernie Medina	....	additional score engineer
Larry Muggerud	....	composer: additional music (as DJ Muggs)
Zdena Pelikanova	....	orchestra contractor
Roy Prendergast	....	music editor: temp music (as Roy Pendergast)
Ashley Revell	....	music editor
Graeme Revell	....	orchestrator
Bryon Rickerson	....	additional music editor

Transportation Department
Lyle Christensen	....	shotmaker driver
Mark Dometrovich	....	dispatcher
Steve Duncan	....	transportation coordinator
Ken Farnell	....	driver
Tim Sisson	....	transportation captain
Bonnie Yamahiro	....	driver
Kenny Youngblood	....	driver
Joe Meylor	....	picture car captain (uncredited)

Other crew
Al Arthur	....	technical advisor
Marc Badrian	....	production assistant
Paul Anthony Barreras	....	production assistant
Daniel Beals	....	production assistant
Bruce Benson	....	helicopter pilot
Cody Birdwell	....	additional production assistant
Mark Blaydes	....	set medic
Steven W. Blumenfeld	....	video playback engineer
Lennox Brown	....	stand-in (as Lennox 'Buppy' Brown)
Raymond Bulinski	....	craft service lead
Raymond Bulinski	....	craft service (as Ray Bulinski)
Jane Bulmer	....	assistant: Mr. Milchan
Christopher Campbell	....	location manager (as Chris Campbell)
Alicia Cho	....	production assistant
Yasmine Coleman	....	executive assistant: Cedric the Entertainer
Casey B. Collins	....	key assistant location manager (as Casey Collins)
Diane Collins	....	script supervisor
Sarah Cooper	....	production assistant
Brian Davis	....	technical advisor
Carla DiBello	....	assistant to producer
David Dilley	....	set production assistant
Philip Douglas	....	production assistant (as Philip 'Pip' Douglas)
Stephanie Dziczek	....	assistant: Ms. Milchan
Joy Ellison	....	dialect coach
Antonio Evans	....	set medic
Matt Fairchild	....	assistant: Mr. Ayer
Heidi Falconer	....	unit publicist
Timothy Farmer	....	production assistant
Marina Filippelli	....	production assistant
Jaime Fitzsimons	....	technical advisor
William Fix	....	stand-in
Cory Fleming	....	aerial coordinator
Amil Fuentes Jr.	....	production assistant: locations department
Erica Gonzales	....	accounting clerk
Kate Gordon	....	assistant: Mr. Stoff
Kurt Greufe	....	first assistant accountant
Ronald M. Haynes	....	key assistant location manager (as Ronald Haynes)
Josh Hernandez	....	production assistant
Lindsay Hudson	....	rigging medic (as Lindsay K. Hudson)
Kenneth Ives	....	assistant: Mr. Foster
Keii Johnston	....	aerial coordinator
John D. Kim	....	adr voice
Daniel Kruse	....	stand-in (as Dan Kruse)
Ashley Lamont	....	production assistant
Craig Langus	....	production assistant
David Clarke Lawson Jr.	....	production assistant
Tanya Leal Soto	....	assistant: Forest Whitaker
Kelly Leffler	....	script supervisor
Kojo Lewis	....	key assistant location manager (as E. Kojo Lewis)
Thomas Longo	....	set production assistant
Janet Lonsdale	....	production accountant
Rick Lopez	....	technical advisor
Michael David Lynch	....	production assistant
Carly Machlis	....	accounting clerk
Natalie Mathes	....	post-production accountant
Gina Mauro	....	clearance coordinator
Geoffrey McCarthy	....	production assistant
Marc Meaut	....	crafts service
Julian Meiojas	....	production assistant (as Julian Oliver Meiojas)
Richard Mesquita	....	martial arts instructor: Mr. Reeves
Garrett Mock	....	production assistant
Liliana M. Molina	....	script supervisor: second unit
Cory O'Brien	....	assistant craft service
Barbara Palka	....	production assistant
Lauren Marie Pena	....	stand-in: Martha Higareda
Patrick Priest	....	set production assistant
KB Pugliese	....	assistant production coordinator
A.J. Rinella	....	production assistant
Reynaldo Rodriguez	....	production assistant
Jeremy Sanchez	....	assistant post-production accountant
Linde Sayles	....	production assistant
Karen Scarborough	....	payroll accountant
Megan Schmidt	....	additional production assistant
Jerry Shih	....	second assistant accountant
Rick Shuster	....	helicopter pilot
Bryan Smiley	....	assistant: Mr. Milchan
Michael Smuda	....	craft service
Frank Spruill	....	assistant craft service
Mark Thomas	....	stand-in
Joshua Turner	....	production assistant (as Joshua R. Turner)
Gregory Veeser	....	assistant: Mr. Foster
Justin Vesci	....	assistant: Ms. Weisler
Earl West	....	location manager
Donald E. Wygal	....	production coordinator (as Donald E. Wygal Jr.)
Jiovanni Yacobellis	....	production assistant
Tamara Rosenfeld	....	set production assistant (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Fox Searchlight Pictures
• Regency Enterprises
• Yari Film Group (YFG)
• 3 Arts Entertainment
• Dune Entertainment III (in association with)
• Emmett/Furla Films

Distributors

• Fox Searchlight Pictures (2008) (USA) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Netherlands (2008) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (2009) (Japan) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (2008) (Malaysia) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (2008) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (2008) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox de Argentina (2008) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Fox-Warner (2008) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Twentieth Century Fox C.I.S. (2008) (Russia) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2008) (Brazil) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2008) (USA) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2008) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-Ray Disc)
• FS Film Oy (2008) (Finland) (all media)
• Svensk Filmindustri (SF) (2008) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD) (rental)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2009) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Blu-Ray Disc)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2009) (Netherlands) (DVD) (retail)

Special Effects

• At The Post (visual effects)
• Screaming Death Monkey (visual effects)
• CafeFX (visual effects)
• Bake Visual Effects

Other Companies

• 20th Century Fox Studios  post-production facilities
• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  camera dollies
• Chef Robért Catering  catering
• Christopher Gray Casting  extras casting
• Deluxe  prints
• Designer Wardrobe Trailers  wardrobe trailer
• J.L. Fisher  dollies
• Kodak  motion picture film
• Otto Nemenz International  lenses and Arriflex cameras
• Picture Mill, The  main title design
• Rockbottom Rentals  cell phone rentals
• Rudolfinum  music recording facility
• Scarlet Letters  end titles
• Technicolor Digital Intermediates  digital intermediate and opticals
• Technicolor Sound Services  sound editorial
• Technicolor-JRS Productions  foley studio
• Transportation Resources  transportation equipment
• Wildfire Studios  adr stage

Also Known As:

Night Watch (USA) (working title)
The Night Watchman (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence and pervasive language.

Runtime:

109 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Turkish

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

South Korea:18 | Singapore:NC-16 | Ireland:16 | Finland:K-15 | UK:15 | Norway:15 | Malaysia:18PL | Australia:MA | USA:R (certificate #44158) | Hong Kong:IIB | Canada:13+ (Québec) | Sweden:15 | Iceland:16 | South Africa:16LV | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | Argentina:16 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 | France:-12 | Denmark:15 | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | Portugal:M/16 | Germany:18 (cut) | Italy:VM14 | Taiwan:R-12 | Ireland:15 (video rating) | Austria:16 | Japan:PG-12 | Spain:18 | Brazil:16

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Fox Searchlight Pictures

Trivia:

James Ellroy wrote the screenplay in the mid-1990's inspired by the O.J. Simpson trial. Over the years, Spike Lee, David Fincher, and Oliver Stone were attached to direct the film at various stages of pre-production. Sean Penn was once attached to star. John Ridley contributed to an early version of the screenplay. Belgian director Erik Van Looy was set to direct this film according to various interviews, but these plans were scrapped in preproduction, upon which Van Looy went on to direct Loft (2008/I) in his home country.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Ludlow shoots the Korean guy who was sitting on a toilet, he falls and we see that he has his pants on and the toilet seat is actually down. Later, when Ludlow plants the weapon on the guard at the desk, we see over his shoulder that the toilet seat is now up.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Boss Kim: Yo dawg.
Tom Ludlow: Konnichiwa.
Boss Kim: What?
Tom Ludlow: Konnichiwa. Konnichiwa. It means what's up. So what the fuck's up?

Movie Connections:

References Serpico (1973)

Explosive entertainment

"Street Kings" definitely has the street-cred. Keanu looks real bad-ass, Forrest Whittaker looks like he's digging back into the character he played on "The Shield", writer director David Ayer is no stranger to life on the cop circuit, having written "Dark Blue" and "Training Day among others, and the movie also brings on the token rappers for good measure in Common and The Game. But does it work? Reeves plays Tom Ludlow, a Vice detective on a Special Forces unit in LA, led by Ludlow's friend and former partner Captain Wander (Forrest Whittaker). Ludlow's a dirty cop, but he feels in a good way. He'll execute and then tweak the crime scene if it means taking the low-lifes off the streets for good.

His former partner Terrance Washington (Terry Crews) doesn't see it that way though, as he is in the midst of ratting him out to the head of Internal Affairs, Captain Biggs (Hugh Laurie). When he finds out, Tom follows Washington around, walking right into a convenience store robbery where Washington is gunned down execution style. Wander tells Tom he'll take care of it, but Tom is a man who values justice more than anything. He partners with a homicide detective named Diskant (Chris Evans) to follow the evidence and solve the murder.

The movie, by David Ayer, couldn't be more hard-core. It's filled with riveting gun-battles and fights and it's a movie not afraid to show some real brutal violence and blood. The verbal exchanges between characters are also exceptionally written, heated and intense with a good ear for dialogue. My favorite line by far this year is "Why don't you do the department a favor and clean your mouth out with a buck-shot." And the story pulls off a compelling morality play, sending Tom up a ladder of murder and corruption, and at the same time, climbing him further toward his own redemption. Sure, you can probably see the ending coming if your paying close enough attention, but think about it, the movie couldn't end in a better way.

This is the kind of movie Reeves is excellent in, giving his character edge and toughness but also never losing track of the character's underlying moral dilemma. Whittaker is also incredible in this movie, sinking his teeth into a character who's basically portrayed as "The Godfather" of LA. Hugh Laurie shows up every once in a while, the character feels underwritten though. Chris Evans does a decent job, Cedric The Entertainer and Jay Mohr are nice additions who add some comedy, and it's a small role but Naomie Harris deserves a shout-out for playing the down-to-earth voice of reason character.

"Street Kings" is hard-nosed, gritty film-making. The cast is right on the money, the writing and direction is terrific, and the action couldn't be more exciting. The year is still young but this is one of my favorite films so far.