L.A. Confidential (Two-Disc Special Edition)

Curtis Hansen’s L.A. Confidential, based on the novel of the same name by James Ellroy from his L.A. Quartet series, is a masterful film noir. Set in 1950s Los Angeles, the film uses the city as a canvas to paint an expansive story about crime, corruption, sex, and murder. In the special features Ellroy describes the film as well as anyone can: “Three cops on a collision with their own horrifying demons and as the centerpiece the slaughter of six people in a coffee shop meat locker.”

Officer Wendell “Bud” White (Russell Crowe) does whatever he has to in the name of justice. He has a volatile and violent temper bubbling below the surface, and man-on-woman violence is gasoline to the fire raging within him. Captain Dudley uses White’s “skills” to deal with mobsters who come to town looking to fill the void left by the recently jailed Mickey Cohen.

Sergeant Jack Vincennes (Kevin Spacey) is a cop who enjoys the perks of the job. He works on the Dragnet-inspired television series Badge of Honor and has an arrangement with tabloid publisher Sid Hudgeons (Danny DeVito) of Hush-Hush magazine, a disgusting fellow who loves photographing celebrities getting arrested.

Sergeant Edmund Exley (Guy Pearce) is following in his father’s footsteps and hopes to become a detective. He is a by-the–book cop which is a detriment in the department. Captain Dudley Smith (James Cromwell) informs Exley that if he is unwilling to plant evidence on, beat a confession out of, or shoot a guilty man in the back then he has no use for him as a detective.

On Christmas Eve, a number of cops are involved in the beating of Mexican suspects alleged to be responsible for the injuries to other officers. Exley steps forward to testify, but squeezes the Chief of Police and the District Attorney to get promoted to Lieutenant Detective in exchange, which earns the scorn of every other cop. White and Vincennes get suspended. White’s partner, Dick Stensland, is expelled from the force.

As the men start working cases, their paths began to converge. Exley is the lead investigator of six murders at the Nite Owl coffee shop. White becomes personally involved because his partner Stensland was one of the victims. He looks for clues in the life of one of the victims, Susan Lefferts, a young woman who is part of a prostitution ring of call girls made up to look like celebrities run by Pierce Patchett (David Strathairn). Vincennes helps Hudgeons set up a bust to photograph the District Attorney, who is gay, with a young male actor who has ties to Patchett. Vincennes has second thoughts and arrives before Hudgeons, but discovers things have ended tragically. As they all get closer to the truth, the bodies start to pile up and no one knows whom to trust.

L.A. Confidential is a great crime movie that always keeps you guessing. The film moves along at a brisk pace as both the plot and the characters reveal themselves. The cast of talented actors is one of the best assembled, and Hanson made a great choice picking relatively unknown Australian actors for two of the leads, making the film less predictable than if movie stars had been selected. The cinematography and production design captured the time without feeling dated.

The film was nominated for nine Academy Awards and won two: Kim Basinger for Best Supporting Actress and Hanson and Brian Helgeland for Best Adapted Screenplay. It likely would have awarded Best Picture had it not been for the amazing technical feats achieved in James Cameron’s Titanic.

This new special edition is definitely special with over three and a half hours of bonus footage. Revealing how much the project meant to those involved, the commentary track features quite a line-up: costume designer Ruth Myers, production designer Jeannine Oppewell, director of photography Dante Spinotti, author Ellroy, co-writer/co-producer Helgeland, and actors Crowe, Spacey, Pearce, Cromwell, Strathairn, Basinger, and DeVito.

An extra treat for serious cinephiles is a 5.1 music-only track featuring Jerry Goldsmith’s score. It is great to watch the impact that music can have on a scene, but there are too many empty spaces. There’s no way to fast-forward and know when to stop for the music cue.

A second disc provides detailed information on the film’s creation in a number of newly created special features. In “Whatever You Desire: Making L.A. Confidential” Hanson makes up for not taking part in the commentary track. He talks about wanting to create the city of his youth and many of the other principles offer their thoughts on the project. “Sunlight and Shadow: The Visual Style of L.A. Confidential” has Hanson and Spinotti talk about the cinematography and giving the film a modern look. The actors take part in a mutual admiration society during “A True Ensemble: The Cast of L.A. Confidential” as they talk about the pleasure they had working with each other. The screenwriters and producers talk about the early stages of the movie in “L.A. Confidential: From Book to Screen.”

Older special features from a previous DVD release include a short featurette on the film called “Off The Record,” Hanson shows the photos he used to make clear the look and feel of the movie he wanted to create to producers in “Photo Pitch,” and “The L.A. of L.A. Confidential” is an interactive map that presents clips from the film and the audio explains where in the city it was shot.

A Criterion Collection-worthy extra is a pilot for a planned 13-part L.A. Confidential mini-series for HBO. They passed on the project, and it was then produced in 1999/2000 for the Fox Network, who passed as well. It remained unreleased until it had aired on Trio’s Brilliant but Cancelled in 2003. The pilot starred Kiefer Sutehrland as Jack Vincennes and Eric Roberts as Pachette, which was hard to get my head around after just watching the film. It seems to be a reboot of the book, which had a lot more material available. The episode ends with a “To Be Continued…” but it wasn’t.

A third disc is contained within this two-disc set: a CD sampler of songs from the soundtrack by Johnney Mercer, Chet Baker, Betty Hutton, Kay Starr, Jackie Gleason, and Dean Martin.

L.A. Confidential is a classic film that will long be remembered and appreciated. Even if you don’t buy it, do yourself as favor and rent it. This is one film you need to see before you take, as Sid Hudgeons would say, the “night train to the big adios.”

3:10 TO YUMA (2007)

What rules the universe: order or chaos? Is there a plan set forth by a supreme being or are we all making it up as we go? How do your answers affect the way you live your life? Are you bound by the rules agreed to by society or do you instead choose to do what’s best for you? And does that change when life treats you unfairly? Director James Mangold deals with thought-provoking ideas in this update of the 1957 western based on Elmore Leonard’s short story.

Dan Evans (Christian Bale) is a former Civil War soldier struggling to make a life for his family. He bought a ranch in Bisbee, AZ with the money he received after being badly wounded in the leg, but his cows are dying due to a drought. He has to choose buying medicine for his youngest son over paying the mortgage. That decision further proves to the property owner the land is worth more selling it to the railroad. The situation is grim and the doubt felt by his wife and oldest son, Will, weigh heavy on Evans’ shoulders.

Ben Wade (Russell Crowe) stands in sharp contrast to Evans as a man appearing in control of his fate rather than beaten down by it. He is a well-known outlaw responsible for many robberies and deaths. Yet, he is an appealing figure to some, including Will, who reads dime stores novels that tell Wild West tales similar to ones Wade has lived, because he is smart, resourceful, and charismatic.

After the latest of many heists of the Southern Pacific Railroad’s payroll, Wade and his men celebrate in Bisbee. The gang takes off, leaving Wade behind to enjoy some female companionship for the night. With his confidence high and his guard down, the local sheriff captures Wade the next morning. He needs to be escorted to the town of Contention, three days away on horseback, so he can be put on the 3:10 train to Yuma where he will be tried and put in federal prison. The railroad offers a reward to any who help transport Wade, enough in wages to save Evans’ farm. The money is so high because Wade’s men will kill to get him back. Evans decides to take the risk because it’s the only way to save his farm.

As they head towards Contention, Wade gets away only to be caught by men who act no different than he does. When Evans and the others catch up, they find Wade tied up and being electrocuted, receiving a punishment many feel he deserves: vengeance, Old Testament style. However, Evans and the others see this lawlessness no different than Wade’s and demand he is turned over.

In Contention, Wade’s men catch up. Not even the railroad man is willing to risk his life against the overwhelming odds. Similar to High Noon, Evans becomes the lone man to stand against the bad guys and is determined to bring Wade to justice. Wade tempts Evans with five times the amount of money the railroad offered and safe passage. Besides, he’s already escaped from Yuma before. Whose will and determination will win out?

The story of both men slowly unravels and is smartly revealed by the writers throughout the film. The two characters grow to respect each other as they and the audience learn more about what drove the choices they made and who they really are. They aren’t simply good guy and bad guy as they first appeared and could have ended in each other’s places if different decisions had been made.

Both men know The Bible. Wade quotes it, but has rejected the path suggested. Evans struggles with it, but ultimately believes. He is Christ-like and the film is filled with religious imagery throughout. That’s not to say the film proselytizes Christianity, but like many great stories, such as Cool Hand Luke and One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, it uses the metaphor of the Christ myth to speak about the human condition. Wade takes the role of Lucifer with his “Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven” attitude, but he comes across like an avenging angel at times. Notice the people who receive punishment at his hands.

3:10 to Yuma (2007) tells a marvelous story that can be taken solely as a straightforward adventure film while also offering themes to explore and contemplate. The acting performances by all, especially the leads, are great to watch. Bale and Crowe are two of the best actors working today and they compliment each other well. All the crew departments excel in their roles, creating authenticity in all the scenes. It is the best film so far this year and deserves to be honored as such.