LA Confidential

[FelipeSobreiro 54]

With the passing of Curtis Hanson I think it'd be nice to consider LA Confidential for the canon. I think it's an amazing movie, weirdly underrated nowadays. Great writing, great performances, great characterization of Los Angeles in the 1940s...

[FelipeSobreiro 54]

BTW: the movie is very easy to get legally online, it's on iTunes, Youtube, Amazon Video, etc.

[Muthsarah 124]

Best film of 1997. Going by the Academy's noms, at least. Same year as Jackie Brown and Boogie Nights, though, so....plenty of room for thought. Still way, way better than Titanic.

 

Aside from the last ten minutes, it's basically a perfect film. I would highly approve of a Canon episode.

[AbeFroman 70]

Slam dunk for The Canon. One of the best films of the 1990s, but for some reason not recognized nearly enough as the masterpiece it is.

 

I guess Titanic steamrolled everything else in 1997.

 

Also, this is a master class in adapting an unwieldy novel into a perfect film without losing the soul of its source material.

[CarlosFerreira 20]

Great choice. I haven't seen it since it was in the cinema, but I think it would certainly deserve a shot. I remember it had that feel of 'they don't do them like this anymore' to it.

[HoldenMartinson 221]

In light of Curtis Hanson's passing, I think this would be a good time to discuss L.A. Confidential, which--personally--is such a formative film.

[Muthsarah 124]

In light of Curtis Hanson's passing, I think this would be a good time to discuss L.A. Confidential, which--personally--is such a formative film.

 

Formative? Aside from launching Crowe into the big leagues, I'd be curious to hear what kind of influence this film had. I remember thinking over a decade ago how much the film had receded from popular memory. Like one more Kevin Spacey movie.

 

EDIT: Oh, did you mean in YOUR filmgoing experiences? I see (also, I don't know how to delete posts here). It was quite the bombshell for me too, possibly the first time I saw a film A) that was great, B ) that felt important and adult-y, and C) in theatres. Kicked Braveheart off the top of that list for me, and not a moment too soon. I pushed LA Confidential on as many people as I could for YEARS.

[JeffreyMcDonald 65]

Interesting. I love classic ('40s-'50s) noir and absolutely hated this movie when it came out. I'd be really curious to see it again now, almost 20 years later, and see if I could appreciate it in a way that I couldn't when I was younger.

[Chet Roivas 5]

It's pretty much agreed upon that L.A. Confidential and Wonder Boys are Curtis Hanson's best films by far. Might make for a good versus episode.

[Shrek & Donkey Kong 4336]

I love this film. If Hansen hadn't just passed I'd like a vs. with another 90's neo-noir, but it deserves an episode for pure tribute reasons.

 

 

quick 1997 rankings

 

Boogie Nights

Jackie Brown

Lost Highway

LA Confidential

everything else

Titanic

Chasing Amy

[SeattleMovieCritic 3]

One of my all-time favorites. I agree, it is good time for this one.

[AbeFroman 70]

Bumping this one as the film just turned 20 and continues to improve with each passing year.

 

Despite the presence of Spacey, the film is a pure masterclass in noir, adaptation of unwieldy source material and ensemble performances. It also remains highly re-watchable.

 

LA Confidential seems to get lost in the conversation of great films from the 1990s and even 1997 (Boogie Nights, Good Will Hunting, Titanic, Jackie Brown, etc).

 

For me, it is every bit the equal of Pulp Fiction, Goodfellas, Shawshank and the other "giants" from that decade.