Street Kings

A story of necessary evil. Following Harsh Times, David Ayer has succeeded with another probe into the underworld of Los Angeles. Ludlow is a great dirty hero who reels out one off the cuff wisecrack after another, and Keanu Reeves is right at home in this strange cowboy’s boots. Forest Whitaker is clearly enjoying his character, and Hugh Laurie has easily shaken off his House image. In terms of the overall plot, it can jump from predictable situations to unexpected and downright surprising endings (e.g. shovel in the head). I admit to a little hesitation in my rating because it wasn't clear-cut. At first I considered giving it 4.5 stars, but this kind of movie is just my cup of tea, and in this genre, Street Kings is the best thing I’ve recently beheld. (06/10/2008)

Relentless action, positive tough guys, and negative friends with a facade, that's always been my thing and will continue to be. Whether Keanu reminisces about past trauma with a suffering expression, furrows his brow while pondering the increasing number of corpses, or simply puts on a face that says "touch me and you won't have a hand", pulls out a gun and goes after everyone he doesn't like, I can't help but be amazed and humbled by the fact that this fast-paced and yet highly convoluted bloody corrupt affair can't be stopped. 90% (07/20/2008)

David Ayer and the corrupt police (again?) in the suburbs of Los Angeles (yes, yes, again). This guy has proven himself both as a director and as a screenwriter. The second essential person for Street Kings is James Ellroy. He is certainly more than just good — that's an indisputable fact. Street Kings is like a cup of Turkish coffee. Although steeped for the third time in the same dirty mug where the grounds remained after Training Day and Harsh Times, only now it is the right kind of coffee: strong, dark, dense, bitter and, above all, shamefully delicious. But not everyone likes their coffee like that. To sweeten it up, they threw in sugar cubes in the form of perfect acting performances. Reeves, in particular, makes one forget about his recent dull performances, and Whitaker seems to be saying "sorry for the most ridiculous performance of my career in Vantage Point“ (but he's still pushing a bit too hard - he didn’t use to do that). Street Kings is on its way to being the Crime Movie of the Year, although judging by the feedback here, it seems I'm the only one who thinks so. It's enough to make me happy anyway. Five stars in the context of the genre, otherwise a strong four. I admit that there are a few hiccups here, but nothing that would matter very seriously in a crime movie. Next time, however, Ayer could try a different cup of tea. He’s far too talent to be tucked away in a one-genre box. (06/01/2008)

And exhausted and stale story about a tough guy who eventually mans up and takes everything bravely into his own hands because he finally realizes he's doing the right thing. It's definitely cheesy, but the director knows it and we know that the director knows it. The action is quite tough – at least that. Keanu Reeves is surprisingly solid as a “punk” with a black car and Forest Whitaker is amazing. The buried bodies and the shots to the face are pleasant bonuses as well. The ending is clear after thirty minutes. (09/26/2008)

Initially a hopefully gritty crime drama, which unfortunately slides towards the end into a boring story on a theme we've seen too many times before. And done better. The ending was strangely clamorous, but without emotion, although it probably should have been there, originally. The action scenes were good though, the best being the second shootout in the apartment. Hugh Laurie unfortunately got very little space. (07/06/2013)