Nutty William Friedkin film - it's consistent interesting although also silly. I don't think there's been a more incompetent hero than that played by William Petersen. He struts around in skin tight jeans and mirrored sunglasses, determined to be heroic but keeps doing dumb things - he chases down John Turturro at the airport brandishing a gun and running through security when surely all he would have to do it contact/call the airline and get them to hold up Turturro; he pinches evidence from the evidence room when all he would need to do is wait for it a few days; he gets beaten up by Tururro when the latter is in his custody and so can escape; he decides to rob someone to raise money to participate in a sting; he winds up in a massive car chase with the FBI and causing the death of an FBI agent (I loved this twist); he doesn't cover Willem dafoe's sidekick enough and so gets shot in the face; he doesn't even get a bust.
It hit me half way though that Petersen was actually the villain - the film tracks his descent into madness, wanting to avenge his partner's death (two days to retirement!) so badly that he breaks the law, commits a robbery, causes the death of innocent people, blackmails his girlfriend and corrupts his new partner.
I think the film would have done better had it been told through the point of view of his new partner - because as an audience you want to identify/emphathise with your protagonist. That's the structure that worked in Training Day. You want to hang on to someone moral.
I think it also would have done better if Petersen had been less dumb - sometimes you go "oh wow he's on the edge" other time's he's just stupid.
There were also confusing moments - like how did Dafoe know Dean Stockwell had talked to Jon Pankow? Was Stockwell in on the whole thing? If so what was the point? These sort of holes often popped up in scripts where Friedkin wrote the script.
There's a really weird scene in the locker rooms of a gym where Pankow, Dafoe and Peterson all take their clothes off. Dafoe and Peterson start then Pankow drops his pants and moves into frame. It's like WTF? Peterson also goes full frontal in a love scene with Darlanne Fuegel.
But you know it's consistently interesting. It's got pace and energy and lots of new actors. The car chase is fantastic. I loved the characterisations of the villains - Dafoe is a counterfeiter who is also an artist whose girlfriend Debra Feur is also an avante garde dancer and is a little keen on another dancer (Jane Leaves from Frasier! Lying spread eagled in lingere in one scene)... they tape their sex sessions and Dafoe organises Leaves to come over and sleep with Feur when he's out on a job. It's a very progressive relationship!
He's a better boyfriend than Peterson, who sleeps with parolee Darlanne Fuegel (who is lovely) but forces her to inform (she works at a strip club) by threatening to bust her parole, and isn't interested that she has a kid, and is generally horrible.
Jon Pankow is miscast. His acting is fine - it's a good performance - he just looks so weird with that big head and strutting around. Petersen is a striking presence and the other actors are good.
A nutty fascinating film full of interesting moments.
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