Street Kings (2008)

If you can forgive its stale dialogue, which at times seems so egregiously leaden that it might have been better suited to a Mad magazine parody, 'Street Kings' is a tense, aggressively absurd thriller.

While military man turned director Ayer implicates our culture steeped in violence and the damaging effects of trained killing, whether by police or in war, he's assembled such a deplorable LAPD rogues gallery, it's hard to tell which one is the worst.

Ayer's rapid pacing and solid work by the cast distract us from the script's shortcomings.

Ellroy, who also co-wrote the screenplay, and Ayer share an interest in L.A. after dark, and they explore the city's neon-bathed streets with the glee of children in a funhouse, watching the distortions of everyday people in bent mirrors.

I don't think there were really any bad scenes, but I found the overall film emotionally empty.

Granted, it doesn’t revolutionize the cop genre, but it definitely does a solid job of entertaining for its runtime, and as a movie-watcher (and lover)…ain’t much else that I can ask for than that.

[In the] surprisingly engrossing 'Street Kings,' we are presented with cops who live up to our worst nightmare of excessive force.

The movie has a million flaws, but if you can look past them and enjoy a fun, gritty, violent, racist and entertaining dirty cop film, then you will have fun with it.

Anyone looking for a good shoot-'em-up film should not leave the theater disappointed, but those seeking something thought-provoking might want to stay away.

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