Police Beat

Really one of the most beautiful low-budget films I've ever seen.

The lead actor is very compelling, and the idea of observing American life through an authority figure who is also an immigrant is really striking. And occasionally very funny.

The film as a whole has elements of David Lynch, as well as Linklater's "Slacker." But the sensibility is really not well described through reference to other films. It's really a one-of-a-kind piece of work.

The news in the final credits that all the incidents portrayed in the film were taken from actual police files was strangely disappointing, but when I later learned that the co-writer was the author of a "Police Beat" column in the Seattle alternative weekly, it made total sense.

Honestly, some of the images here are just absolutely singular. You've never seen anything quite like it.

Congratulations to all involved.

The thoughts the officer had while performing some mundane or grisly duties are not at all unusual in lines of work that deal with tragedy and death. Not every thought one has at work is with regard to the victim or patient or body-- in fact, many thoughts do not. It's a self preservation skill that those from the outside looking in aren't always familiar with. Nor is the profundity of some of the thoughts. His observations aren't pretentious. Any intelligent person placed in a similar situation would be likewise philosophical. Some reviewers have a hard time grasping these concepts.

I really loved this movie. The narration was great. A lot of people with traumatic/tormenting types of careers will relate to this film- the way one must go on doing one's job, no matter how gruesome- meanwhile, like anyone else, one is preoccupied with one's own personal life, and at other times, consumed with the absurdity of everyday events. I think the film captured this very, very well. I can't wait to see it again.

By the way, I'm not from Seattle, nor do I care for that particular climate, nor am I connected to any film industry or anything. I'm just a regular person who has held the kinds of jobs one needs to completely disconnect from, who happened to be changing the channels at the time this was airing on Sundance Channel.

Police beat falls into the category of somewhat guilty pleasure for me, though certainly in a different way than most films typically relegated to that category.

It's a pleasure because being a Seattleite it's refreshing to see some of the cities lesser known but quite beautiful locations (gasworks park, for instance) shot beautifully on film for the first time. In addition I have to say that while an argument could be made that the African language narration was pretentious I found it fascinating, if for no other reason than that I always thought the idea of shooting an English language film with an abundance of subtitles would be an amusing experiment. There are also some rather funny scenes scattered throughout the movie, some of which work beautifully and others of which fail.

However it's a guilty one because plot wise it's thoroughly aimless and more than a bit pointless, acting wise it's very inconsistent, and overall it's a weak film. I have to admit a bit of a bias since I'm a volunteer at the place that produced and financed the film (nw film forum) and everyone around here worked on it in some way. The other reviewer's comment that just about everyone in the Seattle film scene worked on this movie isn't an exaggeration. In any case if you get a chance to see it I'd recommend you take it, if for no other reason than to see some beautiful Seattle scenery, a couple hilarious scenes, and more than anything a film experience I can guarantee you won't have had before.

One of the best characters in the whole film was not listed on IMDb. The Bush Assassian was incredibly funny and helped the film get a twist of humor in this dramatic plot. You have the purse snatcher listed whose face was never even seen and Rachel's neighbor...why? What about the rest of the cast that actually had interesting scenes and dialog? I would like to know who the rest of the cast is and where I can find them in the future. There was also a little problem with the sound on the girlfriends messages... did anyone understand what she was saying? Don't get me wrong I think this was a good film but it certainly could have used a little sound work. But I would once again like to state that in the cast listings that ALL cast should be listed not just 8.

I disagree greatly with the previous review. Yes, there is no actual mystery plot, but the movie was not a mystery nor was it supposed to be. Now I don't know what the "original script" called for, and frankly it doesn't matter. What we have is the finished movie and should take it as it has been created. The underlying plot WAS the inner conflict over the relationship between the bike cop and his girlfriend and the crimes that he encounters take a back stage to this.

The movie is filmed very softly and captures the contrast between the harsh realities of the city and the beauty of the scenery. This mirrors the conflict within the character and how he operates within his surroundings. The lead character is beauty surrounded by contrasting darkness as his relationship which is a contrast between deep love and deep pain. I believe that the filmmakers tackled this complex character with compassion but without a false intensity which makes the film both believable and human. I would recommend this movie to anyone who likes to delve into issues of humanity, however if you are looking for a great cops and robbers story, you WILL be disappointed. And frankly, I'm happy that this story grew beyond simple archetypes.