Cement

Bad cops, stoned cops, cheating girlfriends, oh my! I saw this film at the Houston International Film Festival and was completely blown away. Adrian Pasdar's directorial debut was one of the finest I've seen of the film noire genre. It was reminiscent of many evil-cop flicks of the 50s, with the lines between the police and the criminal element just a thin, gray blur. Chris Penn's bad cop routine was anything but cliched, though, and Jeffrey Wright was phenomenal as the drug-addicted partner/narrator. Complex characters, rich dialogue, and cutting-edge cinematography made the dark, twisted plot more fascinating. Keep an eye out for Pasdar's in-joke with clips of his short-lived FOX series `Profit'.

Bad cops, mixed up in corruption, turn on each other in this dark noir film. Chris Penn heads the list of characters, none of which are likable. Jeffrey Wright is Penn's partner, who owes him for saving his life. Sherilyn Fenn is very forgettable as Penn's unfaithful wife, who sets the betrayal and paybacks in motion. The script starts and stops a lot, with joke telling and other nonsense filling in between bursts of violence. Bottom line, the only reason to watch "Cement" is for Chris Penn's intense performance. Other than that, there is little entertainment value, and I would avoid the letdown. ...................... MERK

Not a bad Bad Cop Movie. It is a rather deep excursion exploring the immoral Minds of fallen Law Enforcement Officers trapped in an Underworld of Corruption, Maniacs, Drug and Alcohol Abusers, and to add even more Deviltry, the proverbial Femme Fatale.

This is an overwrought and disjointed Neo-Noir that has some really riveting Scenes but it's undercurrent is undercut by some rather Wordy Dialog and sloppy Montage. It starts out with Flashbacks clearly time stamped but this clarity is quickly abandon and these happen rapidly and at random. This lends itself to unneeded confusion in an already top-heavy amount of Characters and undeveloped situations.

There is some good Acting that at times approaches mimicry of Stereotype, but overall these are engaging Thugs and Cops. It has some good Atmospheric touches and is shot in an appropriately dim and gloomy Style. It is quite engrossing but is hampered somewhat by a rapid pace, too many participants and could have used more exposition.

"Cement" is a bad movie about a bad cop (Penn) with a bad attitude and a bad disposition who has a bad guy in a bad way up to his cajones in fast drying concrete. While we're waiting for the cement to dry and the film to figure out what it's about, we're periodically jerked back in time without rhyme or reason so we can watch events leading up to the cement thing. A boring junk flick overall, "Cement" suffers from lack of a story, a clumsy execution, and that most ubiquitous of filmdom's faults; no reason to care. A time killer for the needy couch potato at best. (D+)

I feel Chris Penn is at his best "cop/mobster" characterization in this movie. He's the central character who's life affects every others' after he experiences a life-revelation. Sorry this is so cryptic, but I don't want to reveal any of this twisting plot. Similar movies would be; "Reservoir Dogs", "Internal Affairs".