"I'M A COP, YOU IDIOT!": Governor Schwarzenegger as Detective John Kimball |
Movie: White Heat (1949) (directed by Raoul Walsh)
Undercover cop: Edmond O’Brien divides his time between Vic Pardo and Hank Fallon.
Undercover quarry: Mama’s boy Cody Jarrett.
Face Off: Cody discovers “the copper.”
Crime does/does not pay: Cody goes out with a bang, literally.
Words to live/die by: “Top of the World!”
Coroner’s Report: “If you think Mr. Cagney looked brutal when he punched Mae Clark in the face with a ripe grapefruit in Public Enemy, you should see the sweet and loving things he does to handsome Virginia Mayo, who plays his low-grade wife in this film.” -Bosley Crowther, New YorkTimesMovie: Kindergarten Cop (1990) (directed by Ivan Reitman)
Undercover cop: Arnold will never make it as a guest on Sesame Street.
Undercover quarry: Who would dare mess with a drug dealer named “Cullen Crisp?”
Face Off: If you thought Crisp was tough, check out his mom!
Crime does/does not pay scene: Crisp’s final shootout with Arnold.
Words to live/die by: “We're going to play a wonderful game called..."Who is my daddy and what does he do?”
Coroner’s Report: “Kindergarten Cop is made up out of parts that shouldn't fit, but somehow they do, making a slick entertainment out of the improbable, the impossible, and Arnold Schwarzenegger.” -Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun Times
Movie: Deep Cover (1992) (directed by Bill Duke)
Undercover cop: Laurence Fishburne split between Russell Stevens, Jr and John Hull.
Undercover quarry: Jeff Goldblum at his best as a crazy, but lovable drug dealer
Face Off: Cocaine’s a hell of a drug.
Crime does/does not pay scene: Verdict on new designer drug: “…it’s good!!!!”
Words to live/die by: “You know something? I don't think you could trust yourself.”
Coroner’s Report: “Director Bill Duke's portrait of a neurotically driven cop who goes undercover in Los Angeles to chase Colombian drug dealers is so riddled with cliches that even [Laurence] Fishburne can't rescue it.” -Richard Harrington, Washington Post
Movie: Reservoir Dogs (1992) (directed by Quentin Tarantino)
Undercover cop: Tim Roth bleeding as Mr. Orange.
Undercover quarry: The only thing scarier than a young Lawrence Tierney is an old one.
Face Off: Michael Madsen, a razor blade, a cop’s ear and “Stuck in the Middle with You.”
Crime does/does not pay scene: Mr. White’s grand exit.
Words to live/die by: “If you shoot this man, you die next. Repeat. If you shoot this man, you die next.”
Coroner’s Report: “Though small in physical scope, Reservoir Dogs is immensely complicated in its structure, which for the most part works with breathtaking effect.” -Vincent Canby, New YorkTimes
Movie: Face/Off (1997) (directed by John Woo)
Undercover cop: Sean Archer/Castor Troy. John Travolta and Nicolas Cage play one or the other.
Undercover Quarry: Castor Troy/Sean Archer.
Face Off: Depends on how you define it…
Crime does/does not pay scene: Castor’s harpoon through the chest. Or is it Sean?
Words to live/die by: “It’s like looking into a mirror, but not.”
Coroner’s Report: “In its best moments, Face/Off practically mainlines fury, leaving audiences no time to think or even breathe.” -Kenneth Turan, Los AngelesTimes
Movie: Donnie Brasco (1997) (directed by Mike Newell)
Undercover cop: Johnny Depp treading the fine line between Joe Pistone and Donnie Brasco.
Undercover Quarry: Al Pacino’s aging mobster and father figure, “Lefty” Ruggiero.
Face Off: Has Joe become Donnie?
Crime does/does not pay scene: Lefty leaves the drawer open.
Words to live/die by: “Fugeddaboutit.”
Coroner’s Report: “The miracle of the film, which is based on a memoir by the real ‘Brasco,’ Joseph D. Pistone (in collaboration with Richard Woodley), is that with so many layers of irony, it's so emotionally pure — and so wrenching.” -David Edelstein, Slate.com
Movie: The Fast and the Furious (2001) (directed by Rob Cohen)
Undercover cop: Brian O'Conner. AKA: some guy in a kick ass car.
Undercover quarry: Dominic Toretto. AKA: Vin Diesel when he was cool.
Face Off: There’s nothing like NOS.
Crime does/does not pay scene: Dominic doesn’t just get away scot-free, he gets a Supra!
Words to live/die by: “I live my life a quarter mile at a time.”
Coroner’s Report: “Turbo-charged wallbanger with the IQ of a tire iron. But it jumps off the screen with the mindless panache of a good bad movie.” -Jay Carr, BostonGlobe
Movie: Infernal Affairs (2002) (directed by Alan Mak and Andrew Lau)
Undercover cop: Chan.
Undercover quarry: Police Inspector Lau.
Face Off: He fought the Lau, and the Lau…
Crime does/does not pay scene: Meeting the boss in the garage.
Words to live/die by: “I’m a cop.”
Coroner’s Report: “A huge cult hit; let’s see what Martin Scorsese makes of it in “The Departed.”
Movie:A Scanner Darkly (2006) (directed by Richard Linklater)
Undercover cop: Bob Arctor.
Undercover quarry: Bob Arctor.
Face Off: Arctor gets his man.
Crime does/does not pay scene: One word: rehab.
Words to live/die by: “What does a scanner see? Into the head? Into the heart? Does it see into me? Clearly? Or darkly?”
Coroner’s Report: “A Scanner Darkly” is a movie that tries, in a way, to mess up our minds. And it does.” -Michael Wilmington, ChicagoTribune
