Righteous Kill

Two great actors and one not-so-great story.

By now, you all know my philosophy: try to give a fair review without giving anything away. Especially in this case, since this is a whodunit, so if I give anything away, nobody would probably watch the film anymore.


Basic plot is this: the two former Corleones (of course I'm talking about Pacino and De Niro) play two detectives, who are out to hunt a serial killer. Two younger cops, the brilliant tandem of John Leguizamo and Donnie wahlberg, think the serial killer is one of their own. So everybody is out to find who did it; hence the name whodunit. There's just one problem: either the story was okay and the directing was weak (in which case I'd have to blame director Jon Avnet for the flimsy storytelling), or the script was terrible to begin with (then writer Russel Gewertz would have to take the blame). Anyway, I don't think it was an effective whodunit, as my girlfriend already knew whodidit in the first twenty minutes of the film (she always does that to annoy me).

Let's just focus on the acting, which is this film's strongest selling point. Fans would love to see Pacino and De Niro onscreen together, as their only two movie credits together were 1995's Heat, and before that, 1974's The Godfather Part II, which I wouldn't really count, as they were never actually onscreen together. So this is one of those rare instances when two Oscar winners of this caliber share the same frame.

The acting is spruced up by Wahlberg and Leguizamo, who are two great actors who deserve a break, and they portray the rookie cop-old cop friction just right, practically limiting the show to the four of them. All the other actors didn't really add anything significant. Rapper 50 Cent appears as the gangster Spider, but I could've sworn he just played himself.

There are only three films where Pacino and De Niro acted together, and it's a shame this latest one pairs lousy storytelling with great acting. I hope the producers pair them up again, as both of them are getting old, and they may not have another shot.


*Thanks to Maynard Maleon for the tickets. Good luck on your Bar Exam bro.

Rating: Two and a half stars.