L.A. Confidential

Every great thing you've heard or read about this film--which at this writing has made a clean sweep of the various critics' organization's Best Picture awards and snagged multiple Oscar nominations--is true...particularly any kind words you may have encountered regarding Russell Crowe's heartbreakingly intense performance as the thuggish but chivalrous Detective Bud White, who teams up with a straight-arrow opportunist (Guy Pearce, also terrific) to investigate a mystery so wonderfully complicated that I don't dare attempt to summarize it here. The taut screenplay and hard-boiled dialogue are a welcome throwback to the Hollywood of old, when words crackled and glances were so sultry that nudity would have seemed superfluous--this is the kind of movie, in other words, that they allegedly don't make anymore. Only the ridiculously sunny conclusion, which seems to implicitly endorse White's repugnant methods, keeps this exciting, mesmerizing picture from joining Chinatown and Touch of Evil as one of the silver screen's greatest depictions of corruption. Highly recommended. (M. D'Angelo)[Blu-ray Review—Oct. 14, 2008—Warner, 138 min., R, $28.99—Making its first appearance on Blu-ray, 1997's L.A. Confidential boasts a great transfer and a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack. Blu-ray extras include audio commentary (by critic/historian Andrew Sarris, novelist James Ellroy, costars Russell Crowe, Kevin Spacey, Guy Pearce, James Cromwell, David Strathairn, Kim Basinger, and Danny DeVito, costume designer Ruth Myers, screenwriter Brian Helgeland, production designer Jeannine Oppewall, and cinematographer Dante Spinotti), the TV series pilot (47 min.), a half-hour “Whatever You Desire” making-of featurette, “A True Ensemble” cast featurette (25 min.), a 21-minute “From Book to Screen” featurette, a “Sunlight and Shadow: The Visual Style” featurette (21 min.), 19 minutes of “Off the Record” vintage cast and crew interviews, director Curtis Hanson's “Photo Pitch” (9 min.), “The L.A. of L.A. Confidential” interactive tour map, a music-only option, a six-track audio CD sampler, and trailers. Bottom line: a fine BD release of a contemporary classic thriller.]