Mar. 4, 2012 at 11:03pm with 3 notes
FilmRampartOren MovermanJames EllroyWoody Harrelson
RAMPART (Oren Moverman, 2011) - 3/5 In Los Angeles, Dave ‘Daterape’ Brown is a well known cop for all the wrong reasons. The epitome of police brutality, Brown is a racist, a homophobe, and a misanthrope constantly in trouble with the media and his superiors for his misconduct. He is also incredibly smart and well read, knowing how to alleviate the pressure he has caused but when he is supposedly set up during an attempt to make some quick money, his life begins to crumble around him. His family disown him and his paranoia begins to take over so much so that we as the viewer do not quite know what is real and what isn’t either. Being Moverman’s second feature behind 2009’s The Messenger this film has many of the unlikeable qualities of a director that has too many ideas. The characterisation in Rampart is fantastically detailed and the script co-written by James Ellroy is very impressive but it is an awfully nauseating film, the camerawork being so vivid and mobile and yet it still manages to maintain a rather static pace when it most needs to move forward. Woody Harrelson’s performance as the misogynistic anorexic (how much pain can one contain?) is great, though there aren’t many great supporting roles for him to be compared to, but there is far too much Bad Lieutenant in this to stake its originality.

RAMPART (Oren Moverman, 2011) - 3/5

In Los Angeles, Dave ‘Daterape’ Brown is a well known cop for all the wrong reasons. The epitome of police brutality, Brown is a racist, a homophobe, and a misanthrope constantly in trouble with the media and his superiors for his misconduct. He is also incredibly smart and well read, knowing how to alleviate the pressure he has caused but when he is supposedly set up during an attempt to make some quick money, his life begins to crumble around him. His family disown him and his paranoia begins to take over so much so that we as the viewer do not quite know what is real and what isn’t either.

Being Moverman’s second feature behind 2009’s The Messenger this film has many of the unlikeable qualities of a director that has too many ideas. The characterisation in Rampart is fantastically detailed and the script co-written by James Ellroy is very impressive but it is an awfully nauseating film, the camerawork being so vivid and mobile and yet it still manages to maintain a rather static pace when it most needs to move forward. Woody Harrelson’s performance as the misogynistic anorexic (how much pain can one contain?) is great, though there aren’t many great supporting roles for him to be compared to, but there is far too much Bad Lieutenant in this to stake its originality.

  1. mothlightmagazine posted this
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