Rating: 
Summary: Great Detective Yarn, Even Better Ending!
Review: Featuring solid work from both Jason Patric and the astonishing Ray Liotta (he should have won an Oscar),"Narc" is a dark brutal, tale of the hunt for a supposed cop killer. If the opening chase scene doesn't pull you in, then you don't have a pulse! Writer/Director Joe Carnahan stages and shoots much of this great film like a 70's cop drama, but never lets style overcome the story. Busta Rhymes is good a small put pivotal role as a drug dealer and his revelations near the end of the piece send the tale in a whole new direction. Liotta with his weathered face, bushy goatee and bloated, almost lumbering appearance is a marvel to watch as he alternates between violent, sadistic rage and moments of clear-headed reasoning and remembrance (the stakeout scene in the car when he talks about his deceased wife is one of the best sequences here and a fine bit of subtle acting by both he and Patric). While is has it's moments of bloody violence, the movie never shows us carnage for the sake of shock value. An all around excellent movie, "Narc" will achieve an even greater reputation with the passing of time and be fondly remembered as one of the best cop films in cinematic history. Highly Recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Unflinchingly realistic film about drugs, good cop/bad cop
Review: NARC is an art film. True the story of undercover cops who at times yeild to the incredible pressure of their seedy lives has been told many times, but few films have presented a more savagely realistic insight into this genre than this very fine film. The feeling throughout the movie is one of the viewer being along (in the back seat perhaps), seeing first hand the horrors of the drug world and its effects on everyone it touches. But for once we don't have untainted 'heroes'. We are shown the inner thoughts and very human responses of each of the characters on both sides of the law. Ray Liotta and Jason Patric give superlative, understated, sensitive performances, managing to keep us in suspense until the final black out that ends the movie. The photogrpahy tends to the artsy side, at times showing extended and important dialogue delivered by reflections in car windows - visually appealing but confusing to the senses. I finally had to turn on the English subtitles just to hear the dialogue and to understand the multilayered conversations of narc speak, hip hop, and spanglish. But even with these "reservations' this is a powerful and well directed movie. Gather your courage for explicit gore and give it a try. You'll be rewarded.
Rating:
Summary: How to make an independent film worth watching
Review: Does anyone here remember Speed 2? No? Good. becuase anyone who has seen that film will find if hard to believe that the wooden, stiff and stilted actor (not Sandra Bullock) in the lead role is the same as the one in this small time independent masterpiece. but, and i assure you, it is.Jason Patric is brilliant as the guilt ridden cop on a last case, bringing depth to the character and making the viewer feel for him when he encounters both the good and the bad through the course of this movie. So too is Ray Liotta, whose Henry Oak character is one of the most impressive "cop on the edge" characters since they first started doing movies about cops on the edge. The supporting cast is good too, especially the police chief character, the infected informant, and Busta Rhymes's near-cameo as one of the suspects. The director also helps things along, shooting it with a gritty, almost noirish colour, and making good use of editing and flashbacks, and he keeps the action from getting over the top, letting the characters fire off far more than the weaponry, with a great soundtrack to boot. This film was produced by Tom Cruise, and it actually reflects this: it's not very big, but is eminently watchable. independent film at it's best.
Rating:
Summary: Gritty crime drama in the tradition of '70s cinema
Review: With recent documentaries, A Decade Under the Influence and Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, '70s American cinema is enjoying a resurgence and championed by critics as the last great decade of Hollywood filmmaking. Joe Carnahan is the latest filmmaker to draw upon '70s cinema for inspiration with his new film, Narc, an edgy drama about police corruption. There are several extras included on the DVD that explore various aspects of Narc. First up is an audio commentary by the film's writer and director, Joe Carnahan and the film's editor, John Gilroy. The two men are obviously close friends as evident from the familiarity between them. They joke and talk about all sorts of anecdotal material about the making of the film. Carnahan, in particular, is very entertaining as he gives most of his comments a spin of self-deprecating humour. "Narc: Making the Deal" covers the origins of the movie. Carnahan talks about how it started off as a short film inspired by Errol Morris' famous documentary, The Thin Blue Line (1988), about the murder of a police officer. "Narc: Shooting Up" examines the limitations of working on an independent film. The production ran into all sorts of problems, including running out of money. Liotta and his wife spent time drumming up completion funds while the dedicated cast and crew continued to work without being paid. The look of the film is explored in "Narc: The Visual Trip." Carnahan talks about how certain films were framed and composed. Finally, "The Friedkin Connection" is a ten-minute love fest by the famous filmmaker who is clearly impressed by Carnahan's movie. Narc is a gritty, character driven crime drama in the best tradition of '70s American cinema but given a contemporary stylistic update that is reminiscent, at times, of the films of Michael Mann (Thief) and Steven Soderbergh (Traffic). Paramount has done a fine job packaging a pristine print of the movie with a nice collection of extras that are a notch above the usual fluff, promotional pieces that are created for recent films.
Rating: 
Summary: Bad cop meets confused cop?
Review: With the popular success of the police drama in Film and television, audiences often see a typical plot and delivery. So's the case with NARC. This movies provides a great, powerful beginning and then start to fall into the plot cycle of pretty much any other cop film. Yet, this movie does not get the 4 star review for its plot line, even though the ending does give a twist (slight one but its there nonetheless). This movie does get such a high rating from yours truely because of its delivery. Performances are quite powerful, yet not amazing. Each actor, Jason Patric and Ray Liotta, deliver what then need to in their performances to keep the audiences interested. However, it falls short of spectacular. The DVD also claims that it co-stars "music superstar Busta Rhymes." Apparently you can co-star in a movie and only be in it for about 30 minutes. Surprisingly, Bustas performance of, what else, an unruly criminal stands out as the best performance in the film. Forget the perfomances and the script, leave the visual. With a collaberation between Joe Carnahan (director) and Alex Nepomniaschy (DP), NARC is visually superb. Being a fan on the visual and editing aspect of movies, This film satisfied my appetite. The scheme of color takes on a feel from Payback (I think that's the film) where the chemicals were not taken out of the film stock and left the blue tint. I feel this works well for a cop film. Plus, the rapid camera action brings the audience into the story and holds the audience in tighter when they could have been lost earlier in the film due to slow plot. Overall, a good cop film. Mix in the drugs, I'd say this film pulled off aspects that TRaffic could not and did not. Even though traffic waas an ultimate success, I feel that NARC would be the film to give it a run for its money. (besides... I'm very excited to watch some of the extras on the DVD including the Friedkin Connection.)
Rating:
Summary: Great Detective Yarn, Even Better Ending!
Review: Featuring solid work from both Jason Patric and the astonishing Ray Liotta (he should have won an Oscar),"Narc" is a dark brutal, tale of the hunt for a supposed cop killer. If the opening chase scene doesn't pull you in, then you don't have a pulse! Writer/Director Joe Carnahan stages and shoots much of this great film like a 70's cop drama, but never lets style overcome the story. Busta Rhymes is good a small put pivotal role as a drug dealer and his revelations near the end of the piece send the tale in a whole new direction. Liotta with his weathered face, bushy goatee and bloated, almost lumbering appearance is a marvel to watch as he alternates between violent, sadistic rage and moments of clear-headed reasoning and remembrance (the stakeout scene in the car when he talks about his deceased wife is one of the best sequences here and a fine bit of subtle acting by both he and Patric). While is has it's moments of bloody violence, the movie never shows us carnage for the sake of shock value. An all around excellent movie, "Narc" will achieve an even greater reputation with the passing of time and be fondly remembered as one of the best cop films in cinematic history. Highly Recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: Good acting, an OK storyline and egregious police procedures
Review: If that's your bag, then have at it. The respectable acting is really the only thing of redeeming value here and what saves this movie from a 2-star or lower rating. The cinematography at times tries to look hip and stylish but offers nothing we haven't seen before and seen done better. There's an OK twist to the story's ending, but getting there was where this movie stumbles. Two of the major subplots (the "bad" cop's internal affairs investigation and the conflict between the main character and his wife) basically go nowhere. En route to the climax, you're treated to some of the most over-the-top abuse of police authority you can imagine. Felony assault, felony property damage, illegal search and seizure, and false imprisonment for starters. I can't imagine how two cops could ever expect to deliver a prosecutable case when they obtain their evidence this way, let alone keep themselves out of prison. Those who believe all confessions are beaten out with a phonebook will find this right up their alley. Sorry to burst any bubbles, but that ain't the way it's done out there, folks. But procedural criticisms aside, the story just doesn't have the impact it strives for. Where's Michael Mann when you need him?
Rating:
Summary: DETROIT
Review: If you ever needed a reason not to go to Detroit, I think watching this movie makes me pretty well convinced that I would not want to. (8 Mile was also further evidence). The film is gritty and Detroit is a perfect backdrop for the gritty feel of the movie. Both of the main characters (played by Jason Patric and Ray Liotta) are driven by a sort of obsession. Liotta's obsession and zeal is not well understood until near the end of the film when it becomes clear that much of his "unorthodox" detective work is beyond just unorthodox. Patric is excellent as a cop brought back to active duty after an accidental shooting of a bystander on his previous assignment (for which he was placed on long-term suspension). Patric's character seems detached somehow, slipping further into his police role and further away from his disapproving wife (and their child together). (Patric's former assignment had been to go undercover and infiltrate the city's drug underworld, and apparently he had his own drug problems as a result. His wife stood by him through his rehab and naturally does not wish to see him slip back into this life). The film is not the most structurally sound as far as the plot goes BUT is saved by the superb performances of Liotta and especially Patric.
Rating:
Summary: Cruise and Patric duped us in Narc
Review: In the DVD version of the movie Narc it looks like Jason Patric and Tom Cruise played a practical joke. At the end of the movie the actor playing the Nick Tellis character actually switches back and forth repeatedly between Patric and Cruise. It works because of the beard and hat. You can have fun debating with your friends all night which exact shots are Patric and which are Cruise. We first see Cruise after Ray Liotta has been interrogating Busta Rhymes and then goes out to the car. On my DVD this is the very beginning of scene 13 at 115 minutes. We first see Cruise, but then the next shot quickly switches back to Patric (very tricky). After the Tellis character runs to shut the blue door and then runs over to Busta Rhymes it is most obviously Cruise playing the character. You can even tell by the voice when he says the line "Look me in the eyes." It remains Cruise for a while, but then switches back to Patric right before the scene cuts to Liotta opening the trunk of the car (with the line "cause he was dead"). It's Cruise again when Busta Rhymes is telling the story about the tunnel (about 118 minutes 24 seconds), but then suddenly Patric again. During the scene between the two cops outside of the building it is very difficult to tell who is playing Tellis. It seems to switch back and forth. At the end of the movie after Liotta dies, it is Cruise that stands up. The key is to watch the nose. Patric's nose is completely straight and Cruise's has a bump. Cruise's face also has a slightly different shape, and he is a little shorter. Is this just a practical joke, or merely a ploy to get more people to rent the movie? Either way have fun trying to figure it out, because it isn't easy. I don't know if we were the first people to notice this, but we couldn't find any other references to it on the web.
Rating:
Summary: not your average cop flick
Review: This is not a glamorous movie. There are no fancy soundtracks to heighten your excitement, no ultra-adreneline pumped car chases to boost your blood pressure. However, the violence is realistic and will raise your awareness. The story is great...former narcotics cop is drawn back into the force (to the destruction of his family)to solve a murder of a undercover narcotics officer. He's partnered ( his own choice) wt/ the victim's former partner, Oak, a hot-headed, rule-bending widower. Two cops wt/ diff agendas and back grounds ( both get personal in the end)to resolve the case of a slain officer. Two points of view. Not a typical cop flick though, much more thought has been put into this one. It's raw-not for the average thrill seeker. Good movie, would watch it again.
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