Street Kings (2008)

Director:

David Ayer

Writers (WGA):

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

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)

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: The position of the sun changes in the last scene.

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:

Featured in "HBO First Look: City of Fallen Angels: Making 'Street Kings' (#15.5)" (2008)

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.