L.A. Confidential
Academy Award × 2·National Film Registry
Rent/Purchase
Three detectives in the corrupt and brutal L.A. police force of the 1950s use differing methods to uncover a conspiracy behind the shotgun slayings of the patrons at an all-night diner.
What critics thought
One of the most acclaimed American films of its era, Curtis Hanson's adaptation of James Ellroy's novel drew near-universal praise for the density and intelligence of its screenplay, the richness of its period atmosphere, and a cast whose performances — particularly from Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, and Kevin Spacey — struck many critics as career-defining. The few reservations that surfaced concerned the film's unsparing violence, which some worried might alienate general audiences, though most concluded the film's command of its material more than justified the roughness.
“seductive and beautiful, cynical and twisted, and one of the best films of the year”
Roger Ebert·Chicago Sun-Times
“It's a movie of shadows and half lights, the best approximation of the old black-and-white noir look anyone has yet managed on color stock. But it's no idle exercise in style. The film's look suggests how deep the tradition of police corruption runs.”
Richard Schickel·Time
“The only potential audience drawback L.A. Confidential has is its reliance on unsettling bursts of violence, both bloody shootings and intense physical beatings that give the picture a palpable air of menace. Overriding that, finally, is the film's complete command of its material.”
Kenneth Turan·Los Angeles Times
“L.A. Confidential asks the audience to raise its level a bit, too—you actually have to pay attention to follow the double-crossing intricacies of the plot. The reward for your work is dark and dirty fun.”
David Ansen·Newsweek
“L.A. Confidential gets just about everything right. The light, the architecture, the slang, the music ... a wonderful Lana Turner joke. A sense, above all, of damaged people arriving to make new lives and getting seduced by the scent of night-blooming jasmine, the perfume of corruption.”
Richard Williams·The Guardian
Genres
Crime, Drama, Mystery
Cast & Crew
DirectorCurtis Hanson
StarringKevin Spacey, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, James Cromwell, Kim Basinger
ComposerJerry Goldsmith
L.A. Confidential
Academy Award × 2·National Film Registry
Three detectives in the corrupt and brutal L.A. police force of the 1950s use differing methods to uncover a conspiracy behind the shotgun slayings of the patrons at an all-night diner.
What critics thought
One of the most acclaimed American films of its era, Curtis Hanson's adaptation of James Ellroy's novel drew near-universal praise for the density and intelligence of its screenplay, the richness of its period atmosphere, and a cast whose performances — particularly from Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, and Kevin Spacey — struck many critics as career-defining. The few reservations that surfaced concerned the film's unsparing violence, which some worried might alienate general audiences, though most concluded the film's command of its material more than justified the roughness.
“seductive and beautiful, cynical and twisted, and one of the best films of the year”
Roger Ebert·Chicago Sun-Times
“It's a movie of shadows and half lights, the best approximation of the old black-and-white noir look anyone has yet managed on color stock. But it's no idle exercise in style. The film's look suggests how deep the tradition of police corruption runs.”
Richard Schickel·Time
“The only potential audience drawback L.A. Confidential has is its reliance on unsettling bursts of violence, both bloody shootings and intense physical beatings that give the picture a palpable air of menace. Overriding that, finally, is the film's complete command of its material.”
Kenneth Turan·Los Angeles Times
“L.A. Confidential asks the audience to raise its level a bit, too—you actually have to pay attention to follow the double-crossing intricacies of the plot. The reward for your work is dark and dirty fun.”
David Ansen·Newsweek
“L.A. Confidential gets just about everything right. The light, the architecture, the slang, the music ... a wonderful Lana Turner joke. A sense, above all, of damaged people arriving to make new lives and getting seduced by the scent of night-blooming jasmine, the perfume of corruption.”
Richard Williams·The Guardian
Genres
Crime, Drama, Mystery
Cast & Crew
DirectorCurtis Hanson
StarringKevin Spacey, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, James Cromwell, Kim Basinger
ComposerJerry Goldsmith
Rent/Purchase