Street Kings

"Street Kings" definitely has the street-cred. Keanu looks real bad-ass, Forrest Whittaker looks like he's digging back into the character he played on "The Shield", writer director David Ayer is no stranger to life on the cop circuit, having written "Dark Blue" and "Training Day among others, and the movie also brings on the token rappers for good measure in Common and The Game. But does it work? Reeves plays Tom Ludlow, a Vice detective on a Special Forces unit in LA, led by Ludlow's friend and former partner Captain Wander (Forrest Whittaker). Ludlow's a dirty cop, but he feels in a good way. He'll execute and then tweak the crime scene if it means taking the low-lifes off the streets for good.

His former partner Terrance Washington (Terry Crews) doesn't see it that way though, as he is in the midst of ratting him out to the head of Internal Affairs, Captain Biggs (Hugh Laurie). When he finds out, Tom follows Washington around, walking right into a convenience store robbery where Washington is gunned down execution style. Wander tells Tom he'll take care of it, but Tom is a man who values justice more than anything. He partners with a homicide detective named Diskant (Chris Evans) to follow the evidence and solve the murder.

The movie, by David Ayer, couldn't be more hard-core. It's filled with riveting gun-battles and fights and it's a movie not afraid to show some real brutal violence and blood. The verbal exchanges between characters are also exceptionally written, heated and intense with a good ear for dialogue. My favorite line by far this year is "Why don't you do the department a favor and clean your mouth out with a buck-shot." And the story pulls off a compelling morality play, sending Tom up a ladder of murder and corruption, and at the same time, climbing him further toward his own redemption. Sure, you can probably see the ending coming if your paying close enough attention, but think about it, the movie couldn't end in a better way.

This is the kind of movie Reeves is excellent in, giving his character edge and toughness but also never losing track of the character's underlying moral dilemma. Whittaker is also incredible in this movie, sinking his teeth into a character who's basically portrayed as "The Godfather" of LA. Hugh Laurie shows up every once in a while, the character feels underwritten though. Chris Evans does a decent job, Cedric The Entertainer and Jay Mohr are nice additions who add some comedy, and it's a small role but Naomie Harris deserves a shout-out for playing the down-to-earth voice of reason character.

"Street Kings" is hard-nosed, gritty film-making. The cast is right on the money, the writing and direction is terrific, and the action couldn't be more exciting. The year is still young but this is one of my favorite films so far.

Here's another movie the critics dismissed that turned out to be a great movie. I was initially hesitant to go see the movie because of the negative reviews, but went to see Forrest Whittaker, Hugh Laurie and Keanu Reeves. I think most critics can't look at Reeves and not see Bill Preston Esq or Neo. However Keanu Reeves shows range in the movie and heads up the movie wonderfully.

This movie is a fast-paced LA Cop movie. It starts off great and never slows down. Money well spent at the Theater, and I'm the kind of guy who'd walk out of a movie that does not engage me. I would watch it again.

I wasn't expecting much from Street Kings, just to be entertained and that's what I got. Keanu Reeves played the part good, Hugh Laurie did exceptionally well, while the worst acting in the movie was from Chris Evans. Chris Evans was wooden and didn't seem to be able to act his way out of a glass box, during the argument in the locker room between him and Reeves I bit my tongue to keep from laughing as Reeves was actually doing a good job. The story was good, flawed and slow in places, but overall good. Sure the movie could've had a better cast but it doesn't and the only surprise here is that Chris Evans was worse than Keanu Reeves.

An extremely violent thriller about a jaded cop including hair-rising scenes , gruesome crimes and breathtaking chases. This nail-biting thriller packs plot twists, noisy action, pursuits , shootouts, and continuous intrigue .An undercover cop, LAPD detective Tom Ludlow (Keanu Reeves) , disillusioned by the death of his wife, is implicated in the murder of an officer and must struggle to clear himself. Captain Jack Wander (Forest Whitaker) always covers for Ludlow, as do even his somewhat jealous colleagues. Along the way , Tom is confronted by his former partner, Terrence Washington (Terry Crews) . After technically excessive violence against a vicious Korean gang during the liberation of kidnapped child sex slaves, Ludlow becomes the target of hotshot Internal Affairs captain James Biggs (Hugh Laurie) , who feels passed-over after Wander's promotion to chief. But some members of the elite task force find themselves being taken down one by one . When Tom is wounded , at the Hospital he's healed by a particular nurse who turns out to be his girlfriend, Grace Garcia (Martha Higareda). Later on , Detective Tom Ludlow meets Detective Paul Diskant (Chris Evans) and both of them join forces to investigate the sinister events. Ludlow works his way through the twisted rungs of the police and the deadly streets of Los Angeles for answers that only lead to more questions. And other cops and members of drug gangs are also gunned down . Their City. Their Rules. No Prisoners.

Nice action film displays action-packed, thrills , fast-paced , shootouts , wild fighting images , police brutality and spectacular chase sequence in South Central . James Ellroy wrote the surprising screenplay in the mid-1990s with the same formula of his previous works and inspired by the O. J. Simpson trial. James Ellroy's script for Street Kings (2008) bears certain resemblance to the screenplays for L. A. Confidential (1997) and Dark Blue (2002) . It's a noir movie whose plot is really complex and twisted , the ordinary issue in which certain law enforcement members suspected of being corrupt who are slain one by one and a deranged cop is given a major murder case by a corrupt commander/supervisor who sends him on a wild goose chase looking for fictional suspects and/or pinning the crime on criminals with prior records, only to learn that his boss is the real culprit. While the film was praised for its acting performances, action sequences, and dark tone, the script was criticized for its clichés about police corruption. Keanu Reeves is nice giving an efficient acting as a ruthlessly efficient, unorthodox undercover cop and haunted by the death of his wife . Keanu even did all of his own stunts in the film with no stunt stand-in. And a fundamental fun is to guess which prestigious , famous actor appears here and there, showing his charm and acting skills, including the following : Hugh Laurie , Chris Evans, Cedric the Entertainer, Jay Mohr, Terry Crews , Naomie Harris, Common , John Corbett, Amaury Nolasco, Michael Monks , Clifton Powell , among otheres.

This bone-chilling motion picture was professionally directed by David Ayer , though it has too much dark scenes , and it was shot in grueling 42 days . Ayer is a prestigious writer and director with successes enough , writing or directing films as : Fury , SWAT , Training day , The Tax Collector , U-571 , Fast and furious saga, Suicide Squad , among others. The film is followed by an inferior sequel, ¨Street Kings 2: Motor city¨ (2011), released direct-to-video in 2011 by Chris Fisher with Ray Liotta , Shawn Hatosy , Scott Norman , Clifton Powell, Kevin Chapman . Rating : 6.5/10 . Decent thriller.

(Synopsis) Tom Ludlow (Keanu Reeves), a veteran LAPD Detective, works in a Special Vice Squad Unit in Los Angeles. Ludlow has been suffering from depression since his wife died. On top of that, his former partner, Detective Terrance Washington (Terry Crews) is murdered by two gang members. Ludlow goes on a wild and reckless quest through the mean streets of Los Angeles to track them down and get justice for Washington. Captain Jack Wander (Forest Whitaker) is Ludlow's supervisor who must keep him from going over the edge and out of the cross-hairs of Internal Affairs Captain James Biggs (Hugh Laurie).

(My Comment) Keanu Reeves and Forest Whitaker were excellent in playing their parts. In the first 10 minutes, we get to see how good Ludlow is in using his guns. The movie races at such a fast pace, and it is so intense at times that you don't know who is the good guy or the bad guy. There are some great shootout scenes, and whatever you do, don't get in Ludlow's way, because he will take you out. Usually, the police have this cop culture of protecting each other. After they imply that Ludlow had something to do with the murder of Detective Washington, he begins to question his loyalty to his fellow officers, especially, when they hang him out to dry. At that point the movie gets real interesting. The only problem I had with the script was that it put the tough cop Ludlow in a gloomy mood the whole movie. I would have preferred him to be a cop with self-control and strength of mind. If you enjoy cop dramas, you will like this one, because it has so many twists and turns and back stabbing to keep you interested and wanting more. You will love some of Ludlow's interrogation techniques of the bad guys. (Fox Searchlight, Run Time 1:49, Rated R)(8/10)