Released in 1997, L.A. Confidential is a Neo-Noir crime thriller based off the novel of the same name. Upon its release it was praised by critics and would win several awards (nominated for nine Oscars, winning two), and the film was also a commercial success grossing over 120 million dollars (more than three times its budget). Now I want to explain what a Neo-Noir film would be. A Noir film was a term used to describe Hollywood crime dramas usually taking place in a 40's or 50's backdrop (traditionally they were in black and white) and became very popular in the 50's and 60's. They were also known for unique camera techniques involving light and shadows, emphasis on mystery, and many of them where very sexually charged. A Neo-Noir film is essentially a modern day take on the genre usually adding more action, fast paced dialog, and more up to date themes. Some examples of Neo-Noir would be L.A. confidential, Dark City, and the video game L.A. Noir (which draws heavy influence from L.A. confidential). The story of L.A. Confidential revolves around three police officers in 1953, about 2 years after the arrest of the biggest mob boss in the city Mickey Cohen. Now the city is open for the taking, and the LAPD will do anything to stop it. The big case that happens in the film is the Night Owl killings, three men with shotguns enter a dinner late at night and execute the six people inside (including a cop). A young and very smart officer who sold out some other cops for a promotion broke the case and discovered three black men who were believed to have committed the crime. But after further investigation things don't add up, and the cops discover a conspiracy they could never have imagined. Noir is one of my favorite genres, and few modern films do it as well as L.A. Confidential. Classic Noir movies tend to get a little cheesy with the dialog, but the writing in this movie is top notch (it won the Oscar for best adapted screenplay). All the actors give a fiery and passionate performance, especially from Russell Crowe (who plays one of the cops). The 50's may be my favorite setting and cinema and L.A. Confidential drops me right into the golden age of Hollywood. If I had seen this when I did my list of the 20 best movies of my lifetime I definitely would have put this film fairly high up. L.A. Confidential is a spectacular movie and one of the best crime thrillers in years. If you ask me this movie should have won best picture, unfortunately a little movie called Titanic came out that year. This has quickly become one of my favorite movies; after I saw it I went straight to Amazon and bought the Blu-ray. If you haven't seen it, take two hours out of your day and watch it; you won't regret it.
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