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the Bad Cop Chronicles Vol. 2: "Corrupt"

the Bad Cop Chronicles Vol. 2: "Corrupt"

List Price: $4.99
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: If You're in Left Field, Catch It
Review: Anyone expecting a typical crime drama, or even a Scorsese-esque Urban Anomie Saga w/ slick period soundtrack will be disappointed. This film is genuinely eccentric (not Tarantino-style faux weirdness), made under chaotic circumstances with intense philosophical earnestness. That earnestness, w/ the film's addled direction, can be achingly funny.

The highlights aren't just Lydon's tweaky, flat-voiced hamming or Keitel's poker face (w/ Lydon he's the funniest straight-man since Oliver Hardy). Check it out, the whole film was made in ROME! And they don't seem to care if you notice! Just count the loose plot ends, the obvious, clueless ad-libs, the supposedly tart one-liners that fall like little Hindenbergs. Watch for the scene where Keitel rotates a milk carton, on camera, because the label wasn't visible enough for the product placement. And then there's that "70's Country song," which is actually Tchaikovsky's 6th Symphony played on wheezy folk guitar. These people had no idea what they were doing, but they weren't even trying to do it like anyone else. The result is somehow monumental.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Poorly directed film does not bely exceptional ending.
Review: I ordered this film based solely on the fact that it stars John Lydon. Overall, the film is a bit of a bore, tedious and poorly directed. They kept on playing this stupid 70's country song throughout. However, the last 20 minutes are incredibly good, and the actual ending is haunting. John Lydon has some rough parts, but is overall a very good actor. With an acting class or two, he could be an excellent charachter actor. The film is worth seeing for Lydon's performance alone. Creepy!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The Corrupt Lieutenant
Review: Nine years before his raw, celebrated performance in "Bad Lieutenant", Harvey Keitel gave us another visceral portrayal of a corrupt cop in this Italian police thriller. From Harvey's fringe years in European Cinema, this highly original film pairs him opposite former Sex Pistols frontman Johnny Rotten. Rotten, billed as John Lydon, is an obssessed loner and would-be cop killer conducting personal survellance on the police. He seeks out Lieutenant Fred O'Connor(Keitel), at O'Connor's posh Manhattan apartment that the Lieutenant has purchased with money amassed while on the take, to confess to a series of murders. From that point the two engage in a bizzare and engrossing psychological battle of wills. In "Corrupt", Keitel gives us a portrayal of a deeply conflicted man at odds with himself. Unlike the Bad Lieutenant, who undergoes a combustible emotional breakdown, O'Connor is a man slowly unraveling and Keitel expertly displays every slow painful moment. Along with his other early 80's films "Deathwatch" and "Bad Timing", "Corrupt" proves that Keitel was always giving top notch, emotionally invested, and highly credible performances, even if he wasn't always getting the notice he deserved for them.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: TV version
Review: Nine years before his raw, celebrated performance in "Bad Lieutenant", Harvey Keitel gave us another visceral portrayal of a corrupt cop in this Italian police thriller. From Harvey's fringe years in European Cinema, this highly original film pairs him opposite former Sex Pistols frontman Johnny Rotten. Rotten, billed as John Lydon, is an obssessed loner and would-be cop killer conducting personal survellance on the police. He seeks out Lieutenant Fred O'Connor(Keitel), at O'Connor's posh Manhattan apartment that the Lieutenant has purchased with money amassed while on the take, to confess to a series of murders. From that point the two engage in a bizzare and engrossing psychological battle of wills. In "Corrupt", Keitel gives us a portrayal of a deeply conflicted man at odds with himself. Unlike the Bad Lieutenant, who undergoes a combustible emotional breakdown, O'Connor is a man slowly unraveling and Keitel expertly displays every slow painful moment. Along with his other early 80's films "Deathwatch" and "Bad Timing", "Corrupt" proves that Keitel was always giving top notch, emotionally invested, and highly credible performances, even if he wasn't always getting the notice he deserved for them.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The Corrupt Lieutenant
Review: Nine years before his raw, celebrated performance in "Bad Lieutenant", Harvey Keitel gave us another visceral portrayal of a corrupt cop in this Italian police thriller. From Harvey's fringe years in European Cinema, this highly original film pairs him opposite former Sex Pistols frontman Johnny Rotten. Rotten, billed as John Lydon, is an obssessed loner and would-be cop killer conducting personal survellance on the police. He seeks out Lieutenant Fred O'Connor(Keitel), at O'Connor's posh Manhattan apartment that the Lieutenant has purchased with money amassed while on the take, to confess to a series of murders. From that point the two engage in a bizzare and engrossing psychological battle of wills. In "Corrupt", Keitel gives us a portrayal of a deeply conflicted man at odds with himself. Unlike the Bad Lieutenant, who undergoes a combustible emotional breakdown, O'Connor is a man slowly unraveling and Keitel expertly displays every slow painful moment. Along with his other early 80's films "Deathwatch" and "Bad Timing", "Corrupt" proves that Keitel was always giving top notch, emotionally invested, and highly credible performances, even if he wasn't always getting the notice he deserved for them.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Lydon Performance Saves Film
Review: The plot of this movie is truly intriguing; the acting by Harvey Keitel is fine; but if it weren't for John Lydon as Leo Smith, this pitiful mish-mosh of a so-called thriller would be unwatchable.

The lighting is so dark that it is hard to follow the action. The sound quality is terrible, and the plot twists and turns are so oddly paced that the tension is dissipated before the final scene. The one bright spot is Lydon's fresh and crisp portrayal of the rich psychopathic copkiller. Lydon is a natural actor, and does a great job injecting the right mix of youth and innocence with the aura of sick and dangerous obsessions. If you're a Lydon/Rotten fan, don't miss this; otherwise, forget it.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: TV version
Review: This is the censored version with all the cursing and graphic violence taken out. It may be the only available version which may make it worth something. It does not specify that it is the TV version anywhere so it is a bit of a deception. Pretty good movie if you are curious.


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