Bang

Ever seen a movie with an unbelievable opening plot device, yet the grim urban reality that it is set in allows you to buy it, in some strange way? Well, I think that describes 'Bang' pretty well. The idea of an actress assuming the role of a cop for a day is outlandish (and that stolen uniform fits pretty nicely). But it works if you let it. Don't expect reality in the plot, but you'll find it in the details of this one. A movie that makes you think about the assumption of identity, about who has power in society, and how that shifts depending on the circumstances.

This 1995 film by Ash (Ashley Baron-Cohen related to the comedic actor, Sacha Baron-Cohen) was pioneering in light of today's climate of police accountability. This filmic production almost unseen by the mainstream media since it before social media hyping and as an indie film.

The film was bold, although it used art house tropes it definitely flips the perspective on LA cops. It indirectly looks at LA's gender, race and gang divisions. The pace and humor of story was before full-feature films by his contemporary peer, Guy Ricthie and later films like 2006's "Crank".

It's film that runs on speed and the power of this film relies on having non stars that make characters credible. It earned a 1998 Independent Spirit Award for the main debut actor: Darling Narita but also the film has an early appeareance by then unknown, Lucy Liu! Peter Greene is also a small but supporting character.

It should be said that this came before the critically acclaimed "Traffic". This film which may be hard to find, it a hidden gem if you are into indie styled stories of urban culture!

Highly recommended!

Well, you can´t say really it´s a B-Movie, more a good solid independent flick. Mainly the scenes are from the streets of L.A, the good and the bad parts. The main actor is this Asian-heritaged woman, who got the clothes from a police-officer and following that she cruised around with his bike, diving so to speak into L.A´s street life, with its gang-shooting, relationships, homelessness etc. A bit sad but also it got humour in it. Quite recommended!

I loved this film. Darling Narita's performance convinced me that what I was seeing was possible, however improbable. She carries the film, but there are several other fine performances here.

An added bonus: Lucy Liu, currently appearing in TV's Ally McBeal, in a small but important role as a strung out hooker.

Note: I rented this film from BlockBuster under the title "Bang" with a release date of 1997.

Stars Darling Narita and Peter Greene. Narita is an actress down on her luck who masquerades as a policewoman for a day. Her acting is pretty good, but she miraculously is not killed by any of the criminals with whom she comes into conflict. Credibility is strained. Nevertheless, the movie accurately shows with wry humor how it can happen that people treat us according to who they think we are. In cast credits, Lucy Liu is mis-identified as Lucy Lui. An inauspicious beginning for a actress who appears to be poised for stardom.