An early trip to the cinema to beat the certificate and see a proper 18 certificate film, William Friedkin’s hot-as-asphalt thriller set me back a cool 50 pence back in 1985. The draw was that this came from the director of The French Connection, and had a car chase; that was more than enough to send me to a matinee performance that set a high bar for my expectations of big-screen entertainment. Straight out of the gate, this is no ordinary cop-show; writer Gerald Petievich was a former US Secret Service agent, and it shows. We looking at a war on crime where men and women are cannon fodder on both sides., and everyone has a chance to live and die in L.A.
So we start in Century City, and a presidential motorcade on its way to a hotel. Agents Jimmy Hart (Michael Greene) and Richard Chance (William Petersen) manage to foil a suicide bomber after a rooftop stand-off, but know that they’re ‘getting too old for this sh*t.’ Hart is killed investigating a counterfeit operation, so Chance pairs up with newbie John Vukovich (John Pankow) to take down arty criminal Masters (Willem Dafoe). Initially small-time crook Carl Cody (John Turturro) looks like a way in for the cops, but when Cody escapes from Chance, the cops mistakenly hope to work an undercover sting that goes south. When a tip-off leads to the dynamic duo picking up a diamond merchant at LA’s Union Station, things go south as the cops find the entire city shooting at them, and their best escape is the wrong way up an eight-lane motorway at rush hour…
Most car-chase fans put this at near the top of their best-ever lists, and they’re right. There’s not a bad shot it in, but it also opens up the story of the film in an alarming way. The cops have no way of knowing that the man they’ve lifted is an undercover agent, and their deepening incredulity as agent after agent starts firing on them makes for a surreal, exciting scene. But Friedkin gets all the details right, from the destructive/constructive bent of Dafoe’s sleazy art-dealer to the elaborate counterfeit process he organises. Petersen does well with the nihilistic nature of his anything–goes character (”I’m a bag-man and I don’t give a sh*t about how I do it.’), while Pankow’s scenes with Dean Stockwell as a crooked lawyer are choice. That hard-bitten, sweary dialogue (”If you want bread, **** a baker’ or “I promise not to **** in your *****’) probably kept this one off the TV and away from the Miami Vice/ CSI crowd, but there’s no point in complaining; this is one tough movie from soup to nuts.
A gripping foot chase through LA airport, a wrap-around fantastic percussive soundtrack by Wang Chung, Robert Downey Sr; there’s all kinds of attractions here, but the main meal needs no garnish. Police movies are ten a penny; To Live And Die in L.A. has the ground-rush of Michael Mann at his best, but also taps into the neo-noir energy of LA in a way that few films have. A blast of hard-bitten downbeat action, Friedkin’s film lives hard and dies harder in a way few movies do.
I came late to this one, despite liking many of Friedkin’s films, I only saw it when Arrow released their blu ray a couple of years ago.
Friedkin wanted to one-up his previous car chase in The French Connection, which they actually filmed in real traffic! In ‘To Live and Die..’ the car chase was filmed ‘properly’, i.e. with permission, the freeway was closed, stunt drivers, etc. Nevertheless Robby Muller refused to film from inside one of the cars, relying on the second unit cameraman instead!
This is a classic with Friedkin back in top form and a spectacular car chase. But equally importantly it had a superb cast. Petersen and Dafoe have rarely been better but Stockwell and Turturro as well was a bonus. a very grounded authentic story also made all the difference.
Totally. That cast wasn’t much at the time, but certainly is now. Amazing to read the dismissive reviews at the time; they think a cop avenging is retiring partner is unsympathetic? Sigh…
Everything about this film and review screams quality! That soundtrack on the trailer gave me goosebumps. I think I might even splash out on the Blu-ray edition. Funny, it kinda reminded me of Edward Woodward’s Equalizer for minute. Your memory is good, I can’t even remember how much I paid for my last cup of coffee. Great review and the 80’s are definitely my golden era for cinema.
This is a stone cold belter, and connects up with CSI, and Michael Mann, but also has an energy all of its own. I was amazed by how many sniffy reviewes this got at the time; they’re all wrong, and this is an awesome hard cop movie. And yesterday, I saw a trailer for Queen Latifah taking over the Edward Woodward role in The Equaliser, and I was surprised how unshocked I was; anything goes these days.
I loved the Equaliser, what an opening them tune.
Totally!
In terms of profanity, how does it compare to John Wick?
A bit harsher. But you can’t make a pearl without a bit of grit.
Thanks. Wick is how I measure profanity now. I can’t remember what movie I used to use. Probably just as well.
I seem to be derided for censoring the quotes. But language matters, and bad language needs context to be anything worth repeating.
You won’t hear any derision from me for censoring profanity….
Excellent. Glad we had this talk.
Since it’s a new day and post, are we allowed to talk about the subject that rhymes with “haut lubbocks”?
Is there more to be said on the subject?
I hadn’t given it much thought. More curiosity about the operating procedures here on your blog.
Punish the innocent, reward the guilty, random meaningless backfiring attempts at authority.
Gotcha. So further talk about baut tuttocks is at my own risk.
I’m wondering if your website should come with a warning sign or something. One of those fallout shelter symbols, you know?
It’s a medical term. I reflected the contents of the film. I cannot censor the minds of those who read these words. Taut buttocks. Deal with it.
Oh, I’m dealing with it just fine. I was thinking about singing a song about it but considering how late it is there, I didn’t want to keep you awake.
I’ll save it for another day….
Great, we’ll, we seemed to have covered all the relevant bases, if there’s no other pressing business?
Looking into getting this! Sounds like a big YEP.
Been listening to the soundtrack for over three decades, from Walkman to iPhone. I’m pretty sure you can see some of this online via unofficial channels, but wouldn’t put anyone off buying a copy.
Keeping an eye on a couple of 2nd’s on Ebay.