“Dark Blue” is a dark and violent look at L.A. Cops just prior to the riots that took place after the 1992 Rodney King verdict. A work of fiction, it is based on the book “Plague Season” by James Ellroy, who also wrote the terrific “L.A. Confidential.” It follows the exploits of a corrupt and excessively aggressive officer, Sgt. Eldon Perry (Kurt Russell), who is teamed with a young idealistic cop, Bobby Keough (Scott Speedman), as they investigate a high profile robbery/murder case. Watching “Dark Blue” created a bit of a dichotomy for me in terms of my liking the film. On the one hand, everything about the production offered an entertaining two hours. The plot, though a bit contrived at times, was well written and acted enough to keep me interested all the way through to the end. Early in the beginning there is an ultra-violent and somewhat shocking robbery that left me cold, but set up the dynamic of what would become the satisfying showdown at the finale of the film.

With the ‘bad cop / good cop’ scenario laid out, I was actually reminded a bit of “Training Day”, so it came as no surprise when I later found out that both screenplays were written by David Ayer. But where “Training Day” was much darker in theme and at times a bit over the top, “Dark Blue” had a slightly stronger sense of realism, and was therefore a bit more believable.

And it is in this sense of realism that some of my personal feelings came into play, and detracted from my enjoyment. First we have a film where the story revolves around, though does not directly involve itself with the Rodney King trial and verdict. The film begins with the video of the King beating that is edited in such a way as to make it look like the cops were in the wrong. Right away we are given the mistaken impression that L.A. cops are bad. Then, whenever the trial is brought up, many of the details that exonerated the officers are left out.

The only exception to this is when Russell’s character gives his take on the beating, and says they did the right thing. The fact that this side of the issue is addressed is great, but the fact that it is the opinion of a corrupt cop that we’re not supposed to like or agree with takes all the weight out of his comments. And this is a shame, because his view of the beating is the most sensible one of the film.

One of the other issues I had with the film is a racial one. There was a definite sense of whom the ‘bad cops’ were as opposed to the ‘good cops.’ It was one thing to be able to make this distinction merely by their actions, but as the movie progressed, it almost seemed as though you could tell by the color of their skin. The white cops were ‘bad’, with Speedman’s character being the only borderline exception, and the black cops were good. This wasn’t a prevalent theme throughout the movie, but it certainly existed just below the surface.

The MGM DVD release offers up both Widescreen and Full Screen versions that you can decide on depending on which side you play. The transfer is excellent, with almost no grain to speak of. The audio is also set up quite well, with a nice separation that fills the room with just enough sound to make you feel like you’re really out on the streets.

The extras on the disc are fairly good, with a commentary by director Ron Shelton. There are also three featurettes that allow some of the cast and crew to offer up some of their thoughts on the film. They are all fairly standard, but you do get some good background on the film.

“Dark Blue” is an above average cop movie, and I do recommend giving it a watch. But you should watch it with the knowledge that in spite of the reality based Rodney King storyline that is running in the background, it is still a work of fiction. But within the structure of that fiction is a very one-sided and opinionated look at that background reality.

Directed by: Ron Shelton
Starring: Kurt Russell, Scott Speedman, Ving Rhames, Brendan Gleason, Michael Michelle, Lolita Davidovich
Extras: Audio Commentary by Director Ron Shelton, 3 Behind the Scenes Featurettes, Photo Gallery, And Theatrical Trailer
Specifications: Widescreen (2.35:1) Enhanced for 16x9 Televisions, Full Screen, English 5.1 Surround, French and Spanish Stereo Surround
Studio: MGM
Release Date: 6/24/2003
Region 1
MPAA Rating: R (For Violence, Language and Brief Sexuality)
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We'll give Dark Blue a B-.