STREET KINGS
US, 2008, 109minutes, Colour.
Keanu Reaves, Forest Whittaker, Hugh Laurie, Cedric “The Entertainer” Kyles, Chris Evans, John Corbett, Terry Crewes, The Game, Naomi Harris.
Directed by David Ayer
Another LA police drama and, again, about the ambiguities in applying principles of law and justice on the streets of the city.
Writer-director has contributed to such strong films on these themes like Training Day, S.W.A.T. and Dark Blue. He also directed the very tough Harsh Times – so we know what to expect. Ayer spent his teenage years on the streets of LA South Central.
The star is Keanu Reeves as Tom, proving that in middle age Reeves can be a solid screen presence. We see him wake, do a gun deal with some shady Koreans, get involved in a shootout with them – and then find his team arriving with back-up as well as ‘cleaning up’ the scene and making sure the evidence points to ‘what it looks like’ rather than ‘what is’. The chief of the team is played by Forest Whitaker in his Last King of Scotland vein, a seemingly benign police chief but one who enjoys the exercise of power and commanding this group of somewhat rogue cops. Reeves is his chief protégé and has been for years.
However, enter Internal Affairs in the form of Hugh Laurie (in House form) who begins to open Tom’s eyes, especially when his former partner is found to be giving information to IA and is brutally killed. While Tom is an opportunist as regards crime busting, he is also a bitter man especially about his wife and seems not to care about precautions. This leads him into deeper trouble, revealing more corruption and manipulation than he thought and into danger, even from the team.
This is what is called gritty action drama. Sympathies of the audience could go either way, especially as Tom is no saint and, yet, tries to be a man of principle. Are principles a valuable asset for a cop and for a detective in such a city as Los Angeles?
While the core of the drama is resolved, the way of solving is also open to moral judgment, not only for Tom and for his chief but also for Internal Affairs and its methods.
Strong, well-acted and grim and a challenge on the level of values and principles.
1. The tradition of police stories? Los Angeles? Corruption? The good cop, bad cop routines? Dramatised in this story? To the streets of Los Angeles, night and day, homes, haunts? The precinct? The musical score and atmosphere?
2. A tough film? The ambiguity of police personnel, their activities, emotions, principles? For the introduction to Tom, waking, drinking, driving, the deal with the Koreans, selling them the guns, his being bashed, entering into the supermarket, the shoot-out, the set up, the police arriving, the media arriving, his acclaim as a hero? The arranging of the evidence? His being taken to hospital? His being looked after by the nurse?
3. His past, his wife’s death, his grudge, drinking, bitterness, his relationship with Jack, Jack as his patron, the members of the team, rivalry, acting together, the gatherings, covering the situation, hospital, the role of the group, crime in Los Angeles, the exercise of power, blackmail over authorities with information, morals or not?
4. Captain Biggs, his visiting Tom in hospital, talking about insurance, internal affairs? The discussions? Washington and the rivalry with Tom, past partners, the information Washington was giving to internal affairs, the plan? Biggs and Jack, the past, their taunting each other, blackmail, Biggs holding to principle, the truth? The end? Tom and Biggs’ plan to bring down Jack? His final arranging of the evidence – what the situation looked like?
5. The warnings to Tom, the clash with Washington, following him into the store, wanting to punch him, the shooters and his death? The discussions with Diskant? The information, the autopsy, the evidence? Diskant as a character, his help, young, going into action, the chase, his death?
6. The discovery of the contacts, scribble, his information, the man who was chased, finding the bodies, finding the undercover police? The shoot-outs?
7. Tom, the past, his wife, friendship with the nurse? Going to her in trouble?
8. Misses Washington, the funeral, and not wanting to talk to Tom, his giving her the disc, his plan, his saving her?
9. The team, the tone, following orders, relationship with Jack, on the take, the confrontation with Tom, the mouth wound, the grave, about to shoot him, his using the spade, their deaths?
10. Jack, his power, delusions of grandeur, controlling people, Tom as a favourite, the phone call to get Tom killed, Tom having the phone, the war with the money, the fund, his owning people through blackmail?
11. Biggs, the ending, Tom shooting Jack? The effect? The issues of confidence in the police or not? The issue of principles, corruption, principle in practice?
