The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call- New Orleans

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Eva Mendes, Val Kilmer, Xzibit, Fairuza Balk, Shawn Hatosy, Jennifer Coolidge, Tom Bower, Denzel Whittaker, Irma P. Hall, Michael Shannon
Directed by: Werner Herzog
Rating: R
Genre: Crime
2009

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A New Orleans lieutenant (Nicolas Cage) tries to find the murderer of a family of five, while combating his own gambling and drug addictions.

Review:

Tim: Maybe the most surprising thing about The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call- New Orleans is that despite the awful title, the movie is pretty decent. The film teeters between being decent and good, but it never approaches being a failure. Director Werner Herzog gives us a crazy, drug filled story of a corrupt cop and his demons. This doesn't always make sense, but it is certainly something to watch unfold on screen.

I was impressed and perplexed with the story. The story seems simple- a detective trying to solve a murder. And yet, the film takes a meandering, winding approach. There are certain points in the film when the story almost doesn't matter anymore- it's just enough to see Nicolas Cage moving through this movie, in a world all his own. That isn't necessarily a good thing- story is important, and I was surprised how easy it was to dismiss it here.

Nicolas Cage gives a performance that also defies explanation. There are times when he is excellent, showing glimpses of his past acting glory. And yet, there are other moments where he almost loses control, giving a crazy, over-the-top performance. I am not sure if Cage was trying to show the descent into drugs, sex, and stress, but his speech patterns changed, and it was almost distracting. I can't fully understand or describe his performance. At times, brilliant, at times almost insane. It is certainly a performance that needs to be seen to be believed. I can only shake my head in wonder.

The supporting cast is pretty good. Eva Mendes gives a very strong performance. I thought she was strong, yet fragile- it was hard to forget her in this film. I loved seeing Val Kilmer, but his part is too small, and he randomly disappears for an hour of the film, with no explanation. I'm guessing some of his scenes were cut. Xzibit, Jennifer Coolidge, and Fairuza Balk were enjoyable to see. They had smaller roles, but their presence was welcome and helped the film.

This movie feels too long at 122 minutes. Herzog is in no hurry to move the film along, so it takes its time getting to the conclusion. And yet, in one of the more bizarre events I've seen in a while, the film spends the majority of time creating a huge mess for our main character, which is resolved almost comically fast. It was as if the writers didn't know how to end the film, and decided to spend 2 minutes tying up all the loose ends, logic be damned. It was very, very strange to watch.

The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call- New Orleans isn't too bad. The tale of a corrupt cop is a stunning one to watch- the sex, drugs, corruption, crime, and more are oftentimes hard to watch. This is a gritty, realistic look at an unpleasant part of humanity. I appreciated the realism and the courage to make a hard to watch, graphic film. However, the film is too long, too odd, and too outlandish to be good. I appreciated the effort, but I didn't really like the movie too much. I think with a few tweaks, this could have been a very good movie. Yet, as is, I can only call it decent- although I am still in awe of the unique, crazy storyline and characters.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



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