L.A. Confidential

A shooting at an all night diner is investigated by three LA policemen in their own unique ways.

• Director:Curtis Hanson
• Genre:Action / Drama / Thriller
• Runtime:131 minutes

Cast

Kevin Spacey : Jack Vincennes
Russell Crowe : Bud White
Guy Pearce : Ed Exley
James Cromwell : Dudley Smith
Kim Basinger : Lynn Bracken

Set against the backdrop of the glamor, grit and noir of early 1950s Los Angeles, the film revolves around three Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers caught up in corruption, sex, lies, and murder following a multiple murder at the Nite Owl coffee shop. The story expands to encompass organized crime, political corruption, heroin, pornography, prostitution, tabloid journalism and institutional racism, which result in a huge body count. The novel’s title refers to the infamous 1950s scandal magazine Confidential, portrayed fictionally as Hush-Hush (although a tabloid magazine called Hush-Hush also existed in the 1950s.[1])

Sergeant Edmund Exley (Pearce), the son of a legendary LAPD Inspector, is a brilliant officer in his own right, determined to outdo his father. Ed’s intelligence, his education, his glasses, his insistence on following regulations, and his cold demeanor all contribute to his social isolation from other officers. He increases this resentment after volunteering to testify against other cops in an infamous police brutality case (the Bloody Christmas incident) early on, insisting on a promotion to Detective Lieutenant (which he receives) against the advice of Captain Dudley Smith (James Cromwell). The captain believed that Exley’s honesty and actions as a “snitch” would interfere with his ability to supervise detectives. Exley was motivated by the murder of his father by “Rollo Tomasi”, a sense of justice, and his personal ambition.

Officer Wendell “Bud” White (Crowe) is a violent 6-foot-tall brute and the most feared man in the LAPD. His plainclothes partner Dick Stensland was convicted and expelled from the force following a fictional version of the Bloody Christmas scandal as a scapegoat by the Chief of Police Thad Green and the District Attorney Ellis Loew; and by Exley’s testimony. After these events, Bud vows revenge against Exley. His ties to the Nite Owl case become personal after Stensland is found to be one of the murder victims at the Nite Owl. He has a violent obsession with woman-beaters, counterbalanced by his tenderness towards the victims. His temper often overpowers his thought, and he is perceived as a mindless thug. He is sought out by Capt. Dudley Smith for a black bag job intimidating out-of-town criminals trying to set up in Los Angeles after Mickey Cohen’s conviction and incarceration.

Sergeant Jack Vincennes (Spacey) is a slick and likable Hollywood cop who works as the technical advisor of Badge of Honor, a popular Dragnet-type TV show. Vincennes is also connected with Sid Hudgeons (DeVito) of Hush-Hush magazine. Vincennes receives kickbacks for making celebrity arrests, often orchestrated, involving narcotics, that will attract even more readers to the magazine—and more fame and profit to him. When a young actor winds up dead during one of these schemes, a guilt ridden Vincennes is determined to find who did it. Read more

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