The Bad Lieutenant, Port of Call New Orleans Movie Review

Movie Name: The Bad Lieutenant. Port of Call New Orleans

Movie Type: Action/Drama

Year of Release: 2010

Available on DVD: Yes

Directed By: Werner Herzog

The Story:

Terence McDonagh (Nicolas Cage) is a cop who quickly finds himself on the wrong side of the law struggling with a drug and gambling addiction. Set in a post Katrina New Orleans, Cage is searching for the killers responsible for the murder of a family who lived in a tough part of town well known for drug dealing and crime.

Cage’s girlfriend, Frankie Donnenfield (Eva Mendes) is a super hot, high class call girl also battling a serious drug addiction. The pair become entangled in each others issues (and I don’t mean forgetting to pay the gas bill type of issues) leading to an incredible cycle of events that would test the will of a Saint, let alone a drugged up lunatic with the slightest grasp on reality…

As mentioned before I am not a writer and so the passages above may make this film sound very serious. In fact it has a razor sharp plot covered by a cloak of very dark comedy. This movie is simply a work of insane Genius!

The Good News:

Where do I start with this movie??? It’s a tough call because I thought it was bloody brilliant! The cast was incredible and included great performances from Cage, Mendes, Kilmer, Xzibit and Coolidge just to name a few.

The story was deep, well thought out, very well written and had me guessing the whole way through as to how this roller-coaster storyline was all going to turn out. The direction was crisp and driven giving a perfect blend of violence to drama ratio.

Many people criticize Cage's acting ability as yes, he pretty much looks and sounds the same in every film, but he knocks the ball out of the park whilst playing a manic substance abuser.

The whole movie has a very modern feel to it. In parts the camera work and lighting give the illusion of a reality TV series. This coupled with the shots when Cage is literally tripping his nuts off gives almost a release of the tensions he is quite obviously suffering.

In short, if I had a star system for rating The Bad Lieutenant I would give it 4.5 out of 5.

The Bad News:

Honestly, I didn’t notice to much wrong with the film. There were a couple of slightly wooden scenes and these drifted a little, but they were short and forgettable as the remainder of the film was so good.

Summary:

The Bad Lieutenant is a great movie and I highly recommend it if you don’t mind horrific language, violence, scenes of a sexual nature and drug taking.

Check out the trailer by following the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-GpX3TTvrE