City of Crime

I would describe Harvey Keitel's performance in this violent thriller as exceptional, except that he turns in such remarkable performances time after time. He plays Roy Egan, a veteran con helping his kid brother, Lee (Timothy Hutton), and two other desperados, pull a big jewel job in Palm Springs. The job goes well, but then one of the gang gets murderously greedy, and Roy goes into LA, after him and the loot.

The other element which lifts the movie from competent to first rate are the downtown and industrial locations. For once we see an LA not made up exclusively of lush areas like Beverly Hills on the one hand, and no-go ghettos like South Central on the other. At the same time, writer Ken Solarz and director John Irvin make good use of LA's ethnic mix, with both Chinese and Black gangs playing a part as Roy hunts his man. Hutton, Stephen Dorff, Wade Dominguez and Famke Janssen contribute solid performances, and Lucy Liu is also to be seen. The movie may descend into too much mayhem for some; and the sunny epilogue seems out of place; but this is a must-see for thriller-lovers.

Sure, you can find some plots holes in this film big enough to drive a semi through, but that just keeps it from gathering awards, not from being worth a view.

If you like revenge flicks, and noir, and lots of action, as well as a look at Lucy's Little Lius as she does a pole dance, then you might find this film interesting.

What makes it most interesting, however, is the presence of Harvey Keitel. Having him hunting you down is a real bummer. He manages to get shot and almost beat to a pulp by the Chinese, and still keeps on ticking like a Timex. Maybe he just dreamed of being on the beach in Port Arthur with Famke Janssen (of X-Men fame). It could have happened! Check it out to see who wins and loses and enjoy the ride because it is worth it.

Immedietly after watching CITY OF INDUSTRY I was left with the opinion of " standard urban revenge thriller " . A few days later I was still left with this opinion and a few weeks later I was left with this opinion still . I think it's safe to say that this can best be described as a " standard urban revenge thriller

It plays out very much like a heist movie where some naughty men carry out a robbery and then the naughtiest man in the pack decides he's going to keep the money for himself at the expense of his colleagues . One thing this movie can never be accused of is showing that crime is easy money or that there's anything resembling honour amongst thieves . This alone makes the movie recommended

Another recommendation is the performance by Harvey Keitel who is incapable of ever giving a bad performance and in this type of role as a mean bad mother who is out for revenge he's certainly in his element . Director John Irvin gets the best out of Keitel and you really believe this guy is a killer , not something you can say about one of Kietel's peers in later films - Yes Mr DeNiro I mean you

Despite a heart stopping sequence when it looks like the heist merchants are going to be caught when dozens of cop cars surround them there's one or two sequences by Irvin that don't really make sense . One is where Kietel's character has to make a getaway from a dirty double crosser but the sequence cuts to night where Kietel is crawling through an irrigation ditch . What it took him several hours to move a few hundred yards ? Things like this and Elliot Gould's pointless cameo stop the movie being anything more than standard but if passes the time if you enjoy crime thrillers

I agree with Stephen. I watched this film mainly to see Harvey Keitel's work: I was wholly unprepared for the slam-bang surprise after the heist. I think it's a great revenge flick in the full Bronson mode.

Good atmosphere, but ultimately empty. I love Keitel's work and was prepared to enjoy this movie. I did, for about the first half of the movie. Then came the jarring errors in continuity, like Keitel climbing out of a lake in the dark, breathing heavily, after being chased there in daylight. And the clumsy look-he-dropped-the-motel-key scene (how did Keitel get back into his room after that?). I'm still wondering about the black and Chinese gangs, and what they had to do with anything else in the movie. All in all, I kept waiting for the dynamic climax that would explain why the movie was made, but it never happened. Recommended for fans of good L.A. photography, and for fans of mindless violence (I expected a lot of things from this movie, but "mindless" wasn't one of them).