Dark Blue [2002]

Dark Blue is another thriller involving police detectives and all the usual stuff: loyalty, righteousness, and making the right choice. I guess you have all seen a dozen of this movies, and usually they are pretty lame, but this one’s an exception. Written by David Ayer, it’s a part of his Police Pentalogy, mentioned in his police debut movie Training Day. There are three key elements here: L.A., police and the nineties. To quote Marty Huggins, L.A. was a mess during the nineties. Corruption, racism and other evils of modern society all converged and as a result we got a pretty grim decade. Driven by Kurt’s amazing performance, Dark Blue is an intelligent thriller about an older cop teaching a rookie how to survive in this environment.

Set in 1992, in a hot atmosphere before the acquittal of officers accused of the Rodney King beating, Perry and his apprentice Bobby are on these almost boiling streets. He is trying to teach him some proper street tactics, but the youngin is reluctant. He still thinks that the police is there to protect and serve… I do not know if it is Kurt’s charisma, attitude, or the chemistry between him and Ving Rhames, but there is something about him that makes this movie pretty interesting to watch. Enveloped in this volatile atmosphere, Dark Blue is a visceral story about corruption and difficult choices. With character development as good as this, Kurt and the rest of the cast, had the opportunity to shine. And they took it, enjoy.

Director: Ron Shelton

Cast: Kurt Russell, Scott Speedman, Ving Rhames, Brendan Gleeson, Michael Michele, Lolita Davidovich

Fun Facts: This was an original screenplay written by James Ellroy entitled “The Plague Season”. It was in development for eight years. One time the film was set up at Universal Pictures.

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IMDb Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0279331/