Finally, the dream team too long coming every die hard fan has
been waiting for. Al Pacino and Robert DeNiro in the same film
sharing a substantial amount of screen time together for the first
time since their brief stint in 1995's "Heat." It's really a shame
that after a total of over 80 years between them career wise and a
number of awards including the Oscar, no one could unite these two
icons of the cinema sooner than this. Coupling these guys back in
their Godfather days would have been preferable. Nevertheless
I would have watched both in a lousy scripted B movie just to see
them perform.
In Righteous Kill, Pacino, reunited with 88 Minutes director Jon
Avnet and DeNiro play New York veteran cops Rooster and Turk ( the
duos age made that a no-brainer I guess). They've been on the force
for 30 years and you can tell simply by looking at them that they
have no intention of retiring- at least not any time soon.
Completing each other as partners, Turk is the hot tempered one who
facilitates conflict probably owing the more resolute Rooster a few
favors when he's held him back from maybe killing some scumbag.
When some of these scumbags, i.e. rapists, muggers, drug dealers
start turning up dead, police lieutenant Hingis ( a very seasoned
Brian Dennehy), calls in the pair to investigate. But their not the
only ones probing the murders. Detectives Perez (John Leguizamo) and
Riley (Donnie Wahlberg) are actually leading the case due to their
arriving first at the apartment of a slain rapist, apparently a
victim of the killer.
You would immediately surmise that the mere presence
of two legends of the screen would also make the movie legendary.
Not the case with Righteous Kill. Russell Gerwitz's tight
script is bit rollercoaster, kind of dragging the characters to high
and low points. In any case it's much less interesting than his
clever scenario for Spike Lee's Inside Man. Director Avnet makes a
gallant effort to compensate by casting the lovely Carla Gugino as a
fellow cop and love interest for Turk as well as obligatory shoot
outs with bad guys.
To make it more interesting, Curtis "50 Cent"
Jackson is properly inserted as a local drug dealer/club owner named
Spider. Nearly a carbon copy of his Marcus in Get Rich or Die Tryin',
he's a natural target for a sting operation in which our to vets try
taking him down.
Because of a personal matter between Turk and Perez, there's
enough inborn hostility for both to get into it professionally and
personally. Something to do with a woman. In any case, this minute
subplot does add a little spice.
Righteous Kill is not bad movie. It just seems too average for
the likes of Pacino and DeNiro, two of the greatest actors of our
generation. They carry it through all the way to a remarkable twist
which you may or may not realize from the beginning. I wouldn't mind
seeing them in something similar to this again, but with a little
more depth.
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