"Bad Lieutenant" is the kind of film that plays well at festivals but would be divided amongst moviegoers. It is not a film that you just watch anytime you want. It does not have that rewatchability factor. It is decent enough, where I can see the influence that it had on the "dirty/crooked cop" subgenre. Sadly, that is the best compliment I could give the film.
Harvey Keitel's performance is solid in the beginning but during the second half, it appears as if he is sleepwalking through most of it. It was kind of a disappointment, considering the intensity of the character in earlier scenes. I just expected him to continue that throughout the duration of the film.
"Lieutenant" can be viewed as a character study but sadly, the character is not all that interesting. Well none of them are really.
The runtime is short(surprisingly clocking in at 96 minutes) so it does not feel like a chore to get through. I guess I just expected more from a controversial film, that was rated NC-17. It really did not feel any different from normal R-rated fare.
Harvey Keitel's performance is solid in the beginning but during the second half, it appears as if he is sleepwalking through most of it. It was kind of a disappointment, considering the intensity of the character in earlier scenes. I just expected him to continue that throughout the duration of the film.
"Lieutenant" can be viewed as a character study but sadly, the character is not all that interesting. Well none of them are really.
The runtime is short(surprisingly clocking in at 96 minutes) so it does not feel like a chore to get through. I guess I just expected more from a controversial film, that was rated NC-17. It really did not feel any different from normal R-rated fare.