Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Righteous Kill

Early-bird special kicks butt
By Amy Stillwagon


Have you ever watched an action movie and thought “Hey, my grandpa could totally pull off that gun scene?” No? Neither had I, until I watched “Righteous Kill.”


The years are beginning to show on the faces of actors Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino, and yet they went about their macho cop roles as if they were a bunch of crazy, young 20-somethings. From the beginning of the movie, this veteran cop team seems to be well overdue for retirement, yet they are still hanging out in bars, sleeping with young women, and living the single life to the fullest.

What starts out as a slow-paced plot with cheesy celebrity cameos surprisingly turns out to be a good film. The beginning of the movie is a bit jumbled and leaves you wondering how it’s possible that Turk (DeNiro) and Rooster (Pacino) blend in around the likes of skater Rob Dyrdek and rapper 50 Cent, living through endless nights of sex with women who look like they’re just shy of 30. Once you get past those farfetched details you can finally start to understand what the movie is really about.

Turk and Rooster work the cop circuit as investigators, always at odds with a younger cop duo. As the movie progresses, more and more guilty criminals go free of crimes that Turk and Rooster think they are guilty of, and that just doesn’t fly for this seasoned duo.

When a series of murders of these criminals gets linked back to the police station, things finally get interesting. Turk, a cop consumed by rage, seems to be the obvious suspect. He and his partner become the targets of intense questioning and stake outs.

Scene after scene goes by, building up the evidence against Turk until the plot takes a surprising turn as one of the criminals lives through an attempted murder while one of the station’s own gets targeted by this insider serial killer. Co-workers are plotted against one another and no one trusts the next guy. The final twist to the movie ties it all in for an unexpected and somehow heartwarming finale.

DeNiro and Pacino make for believable but burnt out cops who stick together as partners through absolutely anything they face. Though they may look like your grandpa, they can still handle themselves against even the most unexpected criminals.

The overarching story of unlawful justice kept me intrigued and in my seat until the final credits. However, those of you hoping for an action-packed film should save your money for a movie that doesn’t sell out during the matinee seating, with a senior citizen discount.

Check it out: Righteous Kill


Inside the Actor's Studio- Robert DeNiro



1 comment:

Lauren Flemming said...

I really appreciated this review. My boyfriend tried to con me into seeing this in the theaters, even though there were plenty of "gender-neutral" comedic films that we both could have enjoyed together. I almost faltered, as I usually do, thinking that maybe this macho cop/murder mystery DeNiro film will be different than all the others I've sat through. Your review proved to me that I was right, which is all that matters sometimes. I would have sat through that movie disappointed that I gave it a chance to be different than all the other man-flicks I've sat through. I wouldn't mind watching it on dvd, but I'm really glad I didn't waste the $9 to see it in the theaters. So thank you.

To the bloggers: The new image at the top is sooo much better! I love it, the one before really did confuse me, but this one is perfectly cohesive to what you've done throughout the site. Great ideas with the little food-based one-liners above each review. Great job!