Change Your Image
Kogaratsu
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Lists
An error has ocurred. Please try againReviews
The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans (2009)
As always, the original is better...
OK, let's start with the Nicolas Cage deserves an Oscar thing. Because Cage DOES know how to act, and deservedly won an Oscar for his incredible performance in Leaving Las Vegas, I just wanted to see the movie on how he'd handle the role (compared to the really mind boggling performance of Keitel in Abel Ferrara's masterpiece Bad Lieutenant). Unfortunately, it doesn't even compare: Keitel just blows Cage away in every department. I'm not saying that Cage's acting is bad; it is probably his best acting in quite some time, but no, he just doesn't even come close to Keitel.
The movie itself is OK I guess. That is, if you haven't seen the original one. If you did, you just cannot but compare, and that weighs heavy on this version. I saw a reviewer for the new R1 SE DVD of Bad Lieutenant completely and utterly break down the credibility of the nun as the turning point in Keitel's behavior. How unbelievable that was; how utterly unconvincing... Unfortunately, it is at least a thousand times more convincing than the turning point here: apparently, just out of the blue, Cage decides he's a bad guy and should do something about it. I might have missed something though...
The beginning of the movie is OK, the turning point quite unconvincing, but it's the end that really kills this movie and is just plain weak compared to the original one. This is Hollywood at it's worst: we MUST force a happy end, even if it doesn't make any sense whatsoever. Please give me Bad Lieutenant or Requiem for a Dream ANY TIME instead. Don't get me wrong: there's absolutely nothing wrong with a happy ending, but please, don't force such an ending because the marketeers/producers think the public won't be able to handle the movie otherwise, or---God forbid---nobody will want to see this movie then. The public can handle a LOT more than most people in Hollywood think they can...
If you do like this movie and found it already borderline acceptable/disturbing, do NOT watch Keitel: your stomach won't be able to handle it. If your stomach on the other hand CAN handle some disturbing images, do not hesitate a second and watch the original Bad Lieutenant NOW!! :)
My score? 6/10, but that's just because Cage does put some effort into it. Note that I'd give the original about 8.5/10.