Thursday, September 16, 2010

Mixed Reviews Brookylns Finest Hasn't Diminished Interest

By Gabriel Bush

One of the sleeper movies of the year, Brookylns Finest, was released in March with mixed reviews, but that didn't stop avid action junkies from flooding the theaters looking for an interesting twist on an old story line. Due to the efforts of writer Michael C. Martin and directory Antoine Fugua, this film has made the list of one of the top cop movies since 1973 as well as grossed more profits than expected. Set in the 65th precinct of New York City's Police Department, the problems of living in the inner city all come to light in this well acted film.

One of the main strengths of this film is in the top ranked stars that chose to participate. Many personalities such as Ethan Hawke, Richard Gere, Ellen Barkin, Wesley Snipes, Lili Taylor, Don Cheadle, and many more fill the screen with talent and dedication while paying tribute to some of the hardest working men and women in the world today. We follow the lives, stories, and career paths of three officers played by Gere, Hawke, and Cheadle who end up coming together at the end of the show in a single location, but for very different reasons. The result is a night filled with terror and intrigue as the lifestyle of the area is revealed in its true form.

Filmed predominately in New York, Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn the film takes viewers on a wild ride through the eyes of police officers who often see the worst part of life on a daily basis. To draw viewers in many action-packed sequences have been interwoven into the story. For example, the opening scene shows two men are having a conversation while in a parked car when one is shot in the face. The deceased is then robbed and the killer takes off. It later turns out the killer is actually a police officer in the film who has myriad problems in his personal life.

In every profession there is often a fine line between right and wrong, but in no other career field is the impact of that concept more important. When adding the pressures of outside influences, life and death can hang in the balance. The many factors that can force decisions differently between people are the same kind that affect everyone, but nowhere is it revealed more clearly than in this film where law enforcement and personal lives must find a way to coexist. Whether one is suffering from financial worries, how to survive until retirement, or the complexities and pressures associated with undercover work, personal problems often affect decision making, but this takes on an especially important role in police work.

The writer grew up in this area and based much of the story on personal experience. As such, the story line has that quality of helping the viewer grasp the reality of the situation. With a modest budget, the importance of sharing the story with a mass audience was felt by many of the key actors, who took significant pay cuts in order to see the production of the film materialize.

The film was first viewed at the Sundance Film Festival in 2009 as well as the Venice Film Festival later that year before it was picked up by Overture Films for circulation. It has been met with mixed reviews by critics and audiences alike, so far, but has been praised for the acting and character development of individual cast members. Critic reviews brought the value of the film into question, but audiences throughout the world seem to disagree.

However, as with all critics they do not take into account the personal tastes of mass audiences. Coming in at #11 in the all-time "Dirty Cop Movie" category (based on releases from 1973 to the present), this film saw $13 million in profits in its first week coming in at #2 behind Alice in Wonderland. During its theater run it gross over $27 million dollars and once released internally earned an addition #34 million.

It currently is number one in DVD sales which indicates it does have merit as a film with mass appeal based on the acceptance by the general public. Brookylns Finest is an R rated show due to language, sexuality, nudity, drug content, and violence, but is one worth seeing for those with a yen for a real life action drama. - 40725

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