Dark Blue (2002)

It's April 1992. A turbulent time for Los Angeles, with all eyes watching the trial of the police officers accused in the beating of Rodney King. If those men are acquitted, the whole city might just burn. Kurt Russell stars as Eldon Perry, a policeman who was brought up by gunslingers and sees himself as a man who does a lot of things wrong to get the right results. His superior (Brendan Gleeson) agrees, he knows that whenever he wants ANY mess cleaned up he can ask Perry to get it done. Unfortunately, many other people view Perry as a monster including his wife (Lolita Davidovich), his young partner (Scott Speedman) and an officer (Ving Rhames) intent on uncovering the truth about a recent shooting incident and, in turn, corruption within the LAPD. In fact, as the movie unfolds, Perry starts to think about his own actions and how others view him. He starts to suspect that they may be right.

Written by James Ellroy and David Ayer, this is exactly the sort of thing you'd expect from the writers of L.A. Confidential and Training Day, respectively. Eldon Perry is a larger than life character, a bit of a bully and a braggart even to those he loves, and his moral compass has been thrown so far out of whack that it's unsure whether or not he can find his direction again. Ron Shelton does a great job in the director's chair, allowing for the actors to do their best with the material while he makes sure that all of the threads are winding together to complete the big finale.

Russell excels in the lead role, it's arguably his best performance from his 21st century filmography. He IS a bit of a monster and a horrible person, overall, but he's also a fully fleshed-out character with moments that show that he does have a heart (one scene with him being yelled at by Gleeson really starts to make him slightly sympathetic, while another involving Davidovich reading out a letter to him turns into something unexpectedly affecting). Speedman is okay in his role, he's young and acts naive enough and that's what's needed of him. Gleeson is superb, but Gleeson is always superb. In this movie, however, he's even more superb than usual, his performance sharpened by the gradual development of his true character. Ving Rhames, ahhhh Ving Rhames, he gives a subdued, sweet performance that reminds you of the actor who once seemed so great. Why did he ever start to take roles in every other Straight To Disc (or STD, if you will) piece of nonsense? I'll never know. Thankfully, there will always be performances like this one to look back on. Lolita Davidovich and Jonathan Banks have their supporting roles that allow them one or two moments to shine. And shine they do. Michael Michele may have the most thankless role, but she does okay with it.

Putting these characters together and seeing how things unfold makes for a solid drama. Setting everything on the brink of those 1992 L.A. riots makes for something much more. It's tense, it's incendiary and it's an unflinching reminder of just how easily corruption can insidiously filter through even the most well-meaning of people.

8/10

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The Best Of Times (1986)

Robin Williams and Kurt Russell star in this sports comedy drama from the pen of Ron Shelton (who, with Tin Cup, Bull Durham and White Men Can't Jump to his credit, will always be a gold-medal winner in this particular sub-genre). Williams plays Jack Dundee, a man played by that one mistake he made as a young man during the BIG football game. Kurt Russell was Reno Hightower, the star player, and he made a beautiful pass in the last moments of the game. A pass that Jack fumbled. His whole life, from that moment on, has consisted of him berating himself as "the guy who dropped the ball and lost the game". In a desperate move, Jack stumbles upon what he thinks is a great idea - replay the game. If he changes his perceived history, then maybe he can be content in the present and make headway towards a positive future. He just needs to convince the rest of the town, the guys who made up the opposing team and, of course, Reno.

If you hate American Football, then don't worry, this does feature the sport, but it's not really ABOUT that. Like every other sports movie by Shelton, this looks at a beloved sport and uses it to look at other aspects of human nature and life. The Best Of Times is actually about a big moment in a life that someone would want to change. Can it be done? Is it worth trying? How does it affect other people when someone allows themselves to be eaten away and defined by one mistake, one youthful "transgression".

Shelton has written a number of better scripts, but this works well because of the unlikely relationship between the characters played by Williams and Russell. There's also a good little turn from Donald Moffat, who agrees with Williams' low self-opinion. Holly Palance and Pamela Reed are very good as the other halves of, respectively, Williams and Russell and it's clear that they've been neglected at times. The nice thing, however, is that when things start coming together and everyone sees the effect of re-staging the big game, the ladies don't stay stubbornly rooted against the men. They're supportive, they just don't want such an event overshadowing every moment of their lives. There's also a small role for the great M. Emmet Walsh. He's great, as usual.

Directed by Roger Spottiswoode, this is a good film and has some very funny moments. It even has a typically rousing finale that you can't help getting caught up in (well, I couldn't). Yet, it's never quite as good as it could be. An enjoyable watch, but not one I'd end up revisiting that often, if at all.

6/10

http://www.amazon.com/The-Best-Times-Robin-Williams/dp/6305262128/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357941265&sr=8-1&keywords=the+best+of+times