Confidential is actually the third book in a series of four books called The L.A. Quartet. Brian and Curtis took a work of fiction that had eight plotlines, reduced those to three, and retained the dramatic force of three men working out their destiny. "Collateral" (2004) 10. When he finally got a meeting, it was canceled two days before it was to occur. Dante Spinotti's lush cinematography and Jeanne Oppewall's crisp, meticulous production design produce an eye-popping tableau of '50s glamour and sleaze. Although the name Rollo Tomasi was a fabrication to give form to his father's unknown killer, the specter of the fictitious person hung over the film and was a mystery all its own. He has written words for Den of Geek, Collider, The Irish Times and Screen Rant over the years, and can discuss anything from the MCU - where Hawkeye is clearly the best character - to the most obscure cult b-movie gem, and his hot takes often require heat resistant gloves to handle. Location favorite Boardners on 1652 North Cherokee Avenue (also seen in Ed Wood) is where Dudley Smith and Bud White meet, and Jack suffers a crisis of conscience at Bobs Frolic Room on 6245 Hollywood Boulevard, while the Liquor Store where White meets Lynn Bracken for the first time is Ramons Cane Shop on 1277 South Cochran Avenue. [8] Hanson emphasized that the period detail would be in the background and the characters in the foreground. Viewed 7k times 1 In L.A. He shoots Dudley in the back when he realizes it's the only way justice can truly be served, a la Bud White. The only explanation for this dramatic change of character is a confession that he remembers the reason why he became a police officer (La Confidential). A millionaire named Pierce Patchett (David Strathairn) has sidelines in slick porn and high-priced call girls, and specializes in prostitutes who have had plastic surgery to make them resemble movie stars. I loved it for the most part, especially the moral complexity of the central characters, but the final few scenes seemed to flip flop on Exleys motivations. While the movie's plot is twisty and complex, it all makes sense when pieced together. That's nonexistent in LA Confidential because concluding the film by sweeping the corruption under the rug while not showing how this impacts ordinary citizens is very weak. Privacy Policy. And the straight-arrow Exley believes he could never bend the official rules of conduct, until he discovers that sometimes they need bending. The movie was adapted from James Ellroy's novel and is set in 1950's Los Angeles, where three morally grey cops team up to take down corrupt elements within the force. THE SCRIPTING PROCESS WAS TOUGH. Exley seemed the furthest away from the evil, but he was obviously intent on working his way up through the department from the outset. Confidential was no less powerful in its technical execution and performances. Jack Kelso is the hero of L.A. Noire. "Jackie Brown" (1997) 4. Theres a lengthy subplot involving Bud White investigating a serial killer targeting prostitutes, while Inez Soto (whos kidnapped and raped by the Nite Owl suspects) has a much larger role, and is the focal point of a love triangle between Bud and Ed Exley, which is transplanted to Lynn Bracken in the movie. Spinotti wanted to compose the shots of the film as if he was using a still camera and suggested Hanson shoot the film in the Super 35 widescreen format with spherical lenses, which in Spinotti's opinion conveyed the feel of a still photo. Even then, it wasnt on a studio backlot, but on the Baldwin Hills oilfields in Culver City. It's Me, Margaret' to 'R.M.N.' ''La Confidential'' - The Novel And Film | Blablawriting.com Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! However, there was one moment involving her that raised a few questions. And in the less glamorous side of things, Mrs Lefferts home is in Elysian Park, Lynn Brackens is on Wilcox Avenue, the Nite Owl suspects were found on Avenue 27 in Lincoln Heights, and Jack and Ed interview an informant at Bellevue and Marion in Echo Park. Confidential the best film of 1997. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. The film begins with Serpico being shot and in critical condition, but as the sirens of the ambulance wail, the narrative goes back to 1960. ", Contact me | Privacy policy | Join the mailing list | Links. plot-explanation. Towards the start of the film, Exley is asked to testify in the so-called "Bloody Christmas" case in exchange for a promotion to detective lieutenant, thereby taking his father's place on the police force. L.A. For the band, see, (Type "L.A. Outside city hall, Exley says goodbye to Lynn and White before watching them drive off to Lynn's home in Arizona. Dudley Smith (James Cromwell), who presides at morning roll call, The plot, based on the novel by James Ellroy, can only be described as labyrinthine. Confidential: Original Motion Picture Score, Academy Award for Best Original Dramatic Score, Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published, American Society of Cinematographers Awards, Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Theatrical Releases, Argentine Film Critics Association Awards, Excellence in Production Design Feature Film, Outstanding Achievement in Feature Film Casting Drama, Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for Motion Pictures, DallasFort Worth Film Critics Association Awards, Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures, Best Sound Editing Music (Foreign & Domestic), Best Sound Editing Sound Effects & Foley, Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards, Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures, Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role, "L.A. Hanson had seen Russell Crowe in Romper Stomper and found him "repulsive and scary, but captivating". Although the Nite Owl case appears solved, Exley and White each investigate further, discovering evidence of corruption all around them. Has Bradley Cooper Ever Met The Guardians of the Galaxy Cast? [8] The actor had read Ellroy's The Black Dahlia but not L.A. Exley didn't really want to help anybody, he only wanted to cement a better position for himself. The film never explicitly stated that Smith was the so-called Tomasi, but his final confrontation with Exley at the abandoned motel certainly drew parallels between the two. Confidential into a miniseries, or HBO show, so its no surprise that the films success saw New Regency put together a TV version of the material in 2000. April 24, 2023. According to Helgeland, they had to "remove every scene from the book that didn't have the three main cops in it, and then to work from those scenes out. Patchett was by no means a saint, but his corruption was of a different stripe than that of Captain Smith. Here's L.A. Even if it was treading ground that had been covered in dozens of the best noir films before it, L.A. We are thankful for their contributions and encourage you to make yourown. Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Confidential. Penned by Walon Green (Sorceror, Robocop 2), it toplined a pre-24 Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Vincennes, less Dean Martin-type smoothie and more haunted, generic 1950s Jack Bauer, with Josh Hopkins (Cougar Town) as Bud White, David Conrad (The Ghost Whisperer) as Ed Exley, Pruitt Taylor Vince as Sid Hudgens, Alias star Melissa George as Lynn Bracken (now a Marilyn Monroe impersonator), TV vet Tom Nowicki as Dudley Smith, Breaking Bad star Anna Gunn as a junkie hooker, and most unlikely of all, Eric Roberts taking over from David Strathairn as Pierce Patchett. L.A. Confidential Study Guide: Analysis | GradeSaver "[37] In his review for The Independent, Ryan Gilbey wrote, "In fact, it's a very well made and intelligent picture, assembled with an attention to detail, both in plot and characterisation, that you might have feared was all but extinct in mainstream American cinema. Get The Latest IndieWire Alerts And Newsletters Delivered Directly To Your Inbox. On the face of it, the idea of playing a black market . The film was a box office hit, grossing over $126 million (via Box Office Mojo), and it was nominated for nine Academy Awards including Best Picture. In the scene where Officer Exley confronted Bracken at her home to get information out of her, it was revealed that she seduced him, but photographs of their tryst were taken by Sid Hudgens. Confidential the year's best film. Related: Bloodshot Trailer: Vin Diesel Is A Valiant Superhero, The late Curtis Hanson directed L.A. Confidential was released 15 years ago today, on September 19th, 1997, and to mark the occasion weve put together five things you may not be aware of about the movie. 'Spenser Confidential' ending explained: Netflix sequel set? - Los Hudgens involves Vincennes in setting up a homosexual tryst between struggling actor Matt Reynolds and District Attorney Ellis Loew, intending to create a lucrative scandal. The ending of the novel is basically the inverse of The Godfather Part 2. In the scene where Lt. Exley arrives at the Night Owl after the murder, the patrol officer is wearing a Safariland velcro-fastened handcuff case on his left hip. "[14], To give his cast and crew points and counterpoints to capture Los Angeles in the 1950s, Hanson held a "mini-film festival", showing one film a week: The Bad and the Beautiful, because it epitomized the glamorous Hollywood look; In a Lonely Place, because it revealed the ugly underbelly of Hollywood glamor; Don Siegel's The Lineup and Private Hell 36, "for their lean and efficient style";[12] and Kiss Me Deadly, because it was "so rooted in the futuristic '50s: the atomic age. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. After you claim a section youll have 24 hours to send in a draft. More books than SparkNotes. Besides being a shocking film noir twist ending, it also offered a glimpse into what Exley's real motivations were on his quest to be the LAPD's only do-gooder. L.A. It brings up great questions about what justice truly is, how it can or cant be achieved, etc, etc. A bloody shootout in which six people are massacred at an all-night cafe and three young blacks are arrested drives much of the immediate plot, but a series of unsolved and hardly noticed prostitute slayings haunts White, and Vincennes -- busted to Administrative Vice -- dispiritedly investigates a porn ring. He eventually teams with Bud White (Crowe), and the two mismatched partners discover Smith was attempting to take over a drug empire in the city, and the trail of bodies all lead back to him and his men. Confidential asks the audience to raise its level a bit, tooyou actually have to pay attention to follow the double-crossing intricacies of the plot. Vincennes will be one of the film's protagonists. For long periods, we're not even sure that it is a plot, and one of the film's pleasures is the way director Curtis Hanson and writer Brian Helgeland put all the pieces into place before we fully realize they're pieces. [8], Helgeland found that Hanson had been hired to direct and met with him while the filmmaker was making The River Wild. Lefferts had the bandage on her nose at the time, which sparked Bud's curiosity and prompted him to seek out Lynn after Lefferts was murdered. [86], The movie was released again as a two-disc Special Edition DVD and Blu-ray on September 23, 2008. 1 Answer. "[8], L.A. Set in the early 1950s, the film brought the bygone . Confidential brought classic noir back into the spotlight in the 1990s, but its complicated finale left audiences with a lot of questions. So why go and come home a loser? Support this channel on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/bryanlomaxMen of Honour: L.A. One of the ways that Hanson and co. made the film viable on a mere $35 million budget was by vowing to shoot as much as possible on standing L.A. locations. Confidential. Dudley enters and shoots Bud, Ed discovers that Dudley is 'Rollo Tomasi'. Confidential" in the search box), The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, L.A. They give Ed a medal and say that Dudley died a hero. How did Bud White survive a shot in the chest in L.A. Confidential? According to Amy Taubin in Sight & Sound, Hanson screened Vincente Minnellis The Bad And The Beautiful, for its depiction of classic Hollywood, Nicholas Rays In A Lonely Place, for its look at the dark underbelly of that world, Don Siegels The Lineup and Private Hell 36 for the efficiency of its storytelling, and Robert Aldrichs Kiss Me Deadly for its look at a future-conscious 1950s atomic age. And indeed, Rollo Tomassi is entirely the invention of Hanson and Helgeland Exleys father Preston is a key character in the novel, who eventually ends up taking his own life, but hes amalgamated with his brother, who had been killed, in the film. Confidential is a crime epic packed with complicated characters each of whom is given complex parts to play within a dense panorama that may focus on the investigation of a massacre at a diner, but which expands to become a fictionalized portrait of legal system at work in Los Angeles in the 1950's. 3. Russell Crowe Claims Studio 'Stopped Paying the Bill' for Hotel to Push Him off 'L.A. GradeSaver, 20 June 2020 Web. The pilot was included on the recent DVD/Blu-ray re-release of the film, and its not hard to see why it wasnt picked up: necessarily watered down, its pretty much a generic cop show in period garb, and virtually every actor is woefully miscast (Hopkins probably fares the best, but pales in comparison to Russell Crowes performance). Then he suddenly decides that his career is more important than justice somewhere between the shootout and the interrogation and somehow forgets about all that wrecking ball stuff. Fortunately, the script was passed on to New Regency Productions CEO Michael Nathanson, who loved it, although he concedes in the making of documentary on the DVD that when he later became the head of MGM, that he wouldnt have greenlit the film either. L.A. March 6, 2020. This Article is related to: Features and tagged 5 Things You Might Not Know About, Brian Helgeland, Curtis Hanson, Danny DeVito, David Strathairn, Features, Guy Pearce, James Cromwell, James Ellroy (story, Kevin Spacey, Kim Basinger, L.A. It contains all the elements of police action, but in a sharply clipped, more economical style; the action exists not for itself but to provide an arena for the personalities. Mickey Cohen, the head of organized crime in L.A., has just been sent to prison, and now hit squads are rubbing out his top lieutenants. Smith walks away toward the newly gathered squad cars, but Exley shoots him in the back, killing him. "[8][12] Hanson and the film's cinematographer Dante Spinotti studied Robert Frank's 1958 photographic book The Americans and felt that the influence of his work was in every aspect of the film's visuals. [21], Patchett's home is the Lovell House, a famous International Style mansion designed by Richard Neutra. La Confidential (1997) ending / spoiler In novel form as written James Ellroy, L.A. L.A. He then interrogates Johnny Stompanato, Cohen's ex-bodyguard, who says Meeks was trying to sell a large stash of heroin he had stolen. Confidential: Hollywoods Last Great Film Noir, View Wikipedia Entries for L.A. Confidential. L.A. The other two cops are Officer Bud White (Russell Crowe), who believes in bending the law to enforce it, and Detective Ed Exley (Guy Pearce), a straight-arrow type whose self-righteous morality gets on the department's nerves. Exley soon investigates a robbery and multiple homicide at the Nite Owl coffee shop. Smith responds by shooting Jack in the chest, and as the stunned detective is dying, the Captain asks him if he has last words; Jack responds with "Rollo Tomassi," and chuckles with small satisfaction at Smith's confusion as he dies. Exley brought down White's partner Stensland, and their earlier fight proved he thought just as little of White and his brand of violent "justice". The Nite Owl Cafe was in fact the J&J Sandwich Shop on 119 East 6th Street, while Pierce Patchetts home is the gorgeous 1929 Lovell House on 4616 Dundee Drive. The movie also documents a specific time when the world of police work edged into show business. At the police station, White and Exley fight, but stop when both realize that Smith is corrupt. "The Big Lebowski" (1998) Entertainment News Service. Gets shot, presumably in the left arm, as we later see his left arm is in a sling. Confidential. Confidential " wasn't greeted with especially high expectations in the run up to its release. I've seen endless hours of violence in movies over the years, but hardly anything to equal what happens to the D.A. The screenplay by Hanson and Brian Helgeland is based on James Ellroy 's 1990 novel of the same name, the third book in his L.A. Quartet series. She doesn't really have one - not directly, anyway. Sign up for our Email Newsletters here. Confidential brought classic noir back into the spotlight in the 1990s, but its complicated finale left audiences with a lot of questions. He currently lives in Los Angeles and pursues writing full time. MORE: 10 Best Modern Film Noir Movies, Ranked According To IMDb. Although the plot was tied together by celebrated author James Ellroy, many aspects of the film were taken from real events and were reflective of Los Angeles' dark past. That style of rounded cuff case was not introduced until the early to mid 70s. L.A. "[12] But Hanson wanted to debut the film at a high-profile international venue. A shooting at an all night diner is investigated by three LA policemen in their own unique ways. Confidential. An editor As Exley holds Smith at gunpoint, Smith assures him that he will deal with the arriving police and have Exley promoted. Warner Bros had picked up the rights to James Ellroys novel soon after publication, and Brian Helgeland, who was working on other projects with the studio at the time, pursued the job, but was deemed too inexperienced. 2023 IndieWire Media, LLC. Dudley enters and shoots Bud, Ed discovers that Dudley is 'Rollo Tomasi'. Confidential's ending intentionally existed in the gray area which was more true to life. "L.A. The events of the scene were straightforward, but Exley's motivations were not. The second character which the film introduces audiences to is Officer Wendell, who audiences quickly learn is a violent but resolute man who has a set of principles that he invariably sticks with. "[35], In his review for The New York Observer, Andrew Sarris wrote, "Mr. Crowe strikes the deepest registers with the tortured character of Bud White, a part that has had less cut out of it from the book than either Mr. Spacey's or Mr. Pearce's but Mr. Crowe at moments reminded me of James Cagney's poignant performance in Charles Vidor's Love Me or Leave Me (1955), and I can think of no higher praise. Confidential was nominated for. Confidential wasnt greeted with especially high expectations in the run up to its release. Potential villains are all over the screen, but they remain potential right up to the closing scenes. Just as Carnahan got his project going, news also emerged from TMZ that Hanson and Helgeland were working on their own sequel, with an original story focusing on White and Exley. "The Player" (1992) 7. "[38][39] Richard Williams, in his review for The Guardian, wrote, "L.A. will review the submission and either publish your submission or providefeedback. There's a massacre at the downtown Nite Owl Cafe, and a cop is one of the victims. A voice over is non- diagetic which means that we can hear it but it is not apparently coming from anywhere on screen. [16] He found the police films more valuable because "there was a real sort of stiffness, a woodenness about these people" that he felt Exley had as well. Smith, who uses him as a strong-arm man to beat up "suspects," including out-of-town mobsters (the message: go home). L.A. Confidential Summary | GradeSaver It's Me, Margaret' to 'R.M.N. The adaptation is faithful in the broad strokes, but very, very different from the book. This makes no sense to me. In a statement, attorneys for Grossberg suggested her suit was a key factor in Carlson's exit. [88], In October 2020, Brian Helgeland confirmed a sequel to L.A. He also had photographs of jazz musicians Zoot Sims, Gerry Mulligan, and Chet Baker to represent the popular music of the time. The pictures consisted of orange groves, beaches, tract homes in the San Fernando Valley, and the opening of the Hollywood Freeway to symbolize the image of prosperity sold to the public.[8]. In fact, the film's ending served to twist audience's expectations that had been building over the movie's extended run time. [14] For six weeks, Crowe, Pearce, Hanson and Helgeland conducted rehearsals, which consisted of their discussing each scene in the script. Vincennes does die in the novel, but its almost random, killed by a escaped con after a breakout from a prison train. Miller's Crossing from the same year was much better received, with the Coen brothers gangster movie still considered one of their finest.
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