20131219: Drama Review--Rampart

Rampart

1. Fundamentals, reception.
1. American live action feature length film, 2011, rated R, 101 minutes, drama, crime.
2. IMDB: 5.8/10.0 from 15,248 audience ratings.
3. Rotten Tomatoes: 74% on the meter; 35% liked it from 11,103 audience ratings.
4. Netflix: 2.9/5.0 from 302,148 audience ratings.
5. Directed by: Owen Moverman.
6. Starring: Woody Harrelson as David Douglas Brown, Jon Bernthal as Dan Marone, Stella Schnabel as Jane, Jon Foster as Michael Whittaker, Ben Foster as General Terry, Cynthia Nixon as Barbara, Anne Heche as Catherine, Sigourney Weaver as Joan Confrey, Ned Beatty as Hartshorn.


2. Setup and Plot
1. Los Angeles, 1999.


2. At lunch, David and Dan give the new rookie Jane a pep talk of sorts about being in the LAPD.  Jane asks about the scandal.  Something's gone wrong, the DA is pressured to prosecute someone in LAPD, but he would rather not.  More details later; this is central to the movie.  Then David and Jane go on routine maneuvers.  Much of the detail is about different nationalities of illegal aliens, together with the Siamese twin issue of the massive illegal drug industry.


3. David's home life is a bit different.  He married one woman, Barbara.  They broke up, then he married her sister, Catherine.  He sired a daughter with each, Helen and Margaret. Both families live with him.  Just to top things off, when both wives deny him, he's quite comfortable with picking up hot women at bars.


4. After an incident with a man who rammed his car, Dave is asked to retire.  He makes it clear that he has not intention of doing this.  The pressures against him mount.  He retains counsel.  He uses his contacts to try to find out the real motivations behind what's hitting him.  One of the chief of these contacts is Hartshorn, who finally gives up on him.


5. His wives and daughters all desert him, kick him out of the house he pays for, send him their rivers of hate.  Internal affairs is closing in.


6. Will Dave find a reasonable way through the mess he is in?


3. Conclusions
1. One line summary: Follow a dirty Rampart cop on his way down.
2. Four stars of five.


4. Scores
1. Cinematography: 9/10 Usually excellent.


2. Sound: 9/10 No problems.


3. Acting: 10/10 Well done to: Sigourney Weaver, Anne Heche, Woody Harrelson, and Ned Beatty.


4. Screenplay: 7/10 Looked like it needed another 30 minutes to close the loops, but decided to leave things hanging.  What happens to Dave and the rookie, or Dave and Dan, or the larger corruption investigation?  Did Hart recover?  There were lots of loose ends.  Still, the story of Dave moved forward relentlessly.