One of the tautest films ever made, LA Confidential is a film that needs to be seen a few times for the viewer to fully comprehend it. A bathroom break during the film will leave you clueless. This is not to say you won't like it after the first viewing. On the contrary, you'll have a general grasp of the stories in this multi-layered film and appreciate its screenplay and mysterious twists and turns, which make you think and want to see it over again to fill in the minute details instrumental in linking the stories and triggering the actions of the three main characters played by Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, and Kevin Spacey.

Set in 1951 LA, this film shows LA in its glamorous façade. Unlike other film noirs, naturalistic lighting is employed to contrast against the dark side of the setting. Crowe, who steals the film and first served notice as a major player, plays a not-too-bright thug with a soft side. Shocking Australians with his enormous performance, Pearce, a former Aussie soap star, plays a politically ambitious police officer who discovers honesty does not serve him best. And as always, Kevin Spacey delivers a top-notch performance through an unconventional interpretation of his character, Jack Vincennes, a morally bankrupt vice squad sergeant, who is able to live fashionably from his side-job as consultant to a TV detective show and snitch to a sleazoid "Confidential"-like tabloid publisher played by Danny DeVito. Add to this mix a morally ambiguous cop played by James Cromwell, a Veronica Lake look-alike prostitute (Kim Basinger) and her millionaire pimp (David Straithairn), and you have intriguing stories that are intricately yet delicately woven together to create a larger story.

The film starts off with a narration of LA the way it used to be: a land of milk and honey that was gold to gangsters. The primo gangster has been arrested for tax evasion and other wannabes are trying to take over the throne. Main candidates for this position have been murdered and it's anybody's guess who the successor will be. A Christmas-night riot erupts in the police precinct, instigated by the police officers who try to punish Mexican suspects for a colleague's beating (one could see why the police is distrusted by people of color after seeing this film). A reporter takes photos and they are published on the front page. Someone has to take the fall. Ed Exley (Pearce) who tried to end the riot willingly volunteers as witness in return for promotion to lieutenant detective. The fall guy turns out to be Bud White (Crowe)'s partner who was just a year shy of eligibility for his pension. He is soon found murdered in a 24-hour café along with two women and several men. One of the women is a prostitute cut to look like Rita Hayworth, a friend of a woman Bud White encountered the night before, Lynn Bracken (Basinger), who was in the company of their pimp and an ex-cop named Meeks. As a loyal friend of his dead partner, White seeks to find the killers. Exley takes interest in the case to further his career. Vincennes indirectly becomes involved later when his conscience catches up with him and tries to do good. Their respective cases, it turns out, are linked to 25 pounds of stolen heroin.

The performances are superb and it was too bad neither Crowe nor Pearce were nominated for awards. The fact that they were no-names may have been the reason. Basinger finally got her due that year but I feel Julianne Moore was more deserving of the supporting Oscar for "Boogie Nights" since she had a more challenging role. And as good as "Titanic" was, this film was artistically superior despite its small scale. On the DVD you'll see screen tests of Crowe and Pearce and interviews with Curtis Hanson, the director, James Ellroy, on whose novels the film is based, and Kim Basinger. The film is fast-paced and keeps you guessing. No one is what they seem is the theme, which is appropo to the backdrop of superficial tinsel town. Watch this film knowing that you won't have distractions and knowing that you can focus for two and a half hours.

P.S.: There are several historical errors in this film. The film "Roman Holiday" Lynn and Bud watch was not made and released until 1954. And Lana Turner became involved with Johnny Stompanato after 1951.

This low-budget film from down-under is a character-study of three everyday people, played by Hugo Weaving, Genevieve Picot, and Russell Crowe. Be warned that it does not have a happy Hollywood ending, and similar to "Secrets and Lies", is more character rather than action-driven.

Weaving, who later stars in "The Matrix", shows his trademark sterness as a blind photographer and misanthrope. He has lost touch with humanity, scarred by a notion since childhood that his mother had rejected him because of his handicap. To verify what he senses, he photographs his surroundings. He has a seemingly cold-hearted housekeeper, who he torments. She continues to work for him because she's secretly in love with him and his dependence on her at least partially satisfies her desires. Their relationship becomes threatened when he befriends a dishwasher at a local restaurant. Weaving's character trusts the dishwasher, Andy, played by a young Russell Crowe, to describe the photos he takes. Fearing that she'd be displaced, the housekeeper sets out to discredit Andy and makes her moves on both Andy and Weaving.

The performances are all superb. Picot shows the vulnerability of a woman who masks her loneliness with a cold exterior. As the film progresses, the viewer increasingly sympathizes with her. Her character is the most interesting of the three. And reminiscent of a young Mel Gibson, a lean and not-yet-so-masculine Crowe plays Andy with sensitivity, innocence, and a hunkiness and easy-going down-to-earthness that he'd project in his later films. Proof is a must for all Crowe fans.

What was the point of the film? That adultery is forgivable and one can actually end up in heaven? The film lacks the wit of earlier Lubitsch films such as "Shop Around the Corner". It's way too talky and lacks action. For example, viewers would've sympathized with Martha the scorned wife more had the film shown her witnessing her husband's infidelity. Don Ameche is competent as the lead but lacks the spark and roguish charm the role requires. I found it hard to believe women would find him irresistable and that his wife would want to stay married to him. This film could've eliminated several scenes not quite pertinent to its story, which dilutes the impact of the storyline. Don't buy this film. Rent it first.

Good junk food for the mind. This book describes a society of gold-digging women who are slightly above prostitutes. They sleep with men three times their age in return for designer clothes, apartments in swanky locales, etc. To find these sort of men they do the "circuit"--travelling to the "in" places depending upon the season. It reveals human nature in all of its depravity. The protagonist gains the reader's sympathy when she describes her wretched childhood. She rarely met decent people in her life so she surrounds herself with rich, amoral people and earns a living by running around their circles. It's sad to say this book is accurate, and the author seems to know the ins and outs of New York's depraved elite quite well. Read it for guilty pleasure. It's to good literature what pornography is to art.

I saw this movie at least ten times. First time was in my early teens, when it was shown on local TV. I never heard of Gene Tierney before, but after seeing this film, I knew I would never forget her. She was the most beautiful actress I ever saw and her mannerisms reveal a classy keen intelligence. Everything about this movie will haunt you--Tierney's beauty, the musical score by David Raksin, the portrait, and the ending.

The film is about a woman who seemed to have everything--a successful career, beauty, brains, wealth--who is discovered murdered in her apartment. A detective, Mark McPherson, played by Dana Andrews investigates the case and starts questioning possible suspects. One is the Svengali-like Waldo Lydecker (Clifton Webb), a syndicated columnist and radio personality. Another is Shelby Carpenter, a smooth Southern gigolo played by Vincent Price (yes Vincent Price!). And there's Laura's middle-aged socialite aunt, Ann Treadwell, who was using Carpenter as her boy-toy until Carpenter meets Laura. Other possible suspect is Laura's maid, a feisty loyal Irishwoman.

The film shows narrated flashbacks by Lydecker. He idolizes her and intercepts Laura's suitors, all of whom he considers beneath her. He couldn't intercept Carpenter who attracts Laura, and who Laura was supposed to marry the week she was found murdered. The first twist of the film is when McPherson falls in love with Laura, who's presumed dead. From reading her diary and letters and continuously seeing her portrait, he discovers she's the woman of his dreams, an unattainable goddess whose physical presence he can only imagine. So when twist number two happens, the murder investigation understandably becomes secondary to this gumshoe detective.

This is the best film directed by Otto Preminger. I believe it's the first American film he directed, and his following films pale by comparison. Ironically, this is a film full of second choices. The lead was written with Jennifer Jones in mind, but she turned it down. It was then offered to Heddy Lamarr who also turned it down. Tierney claimed in her autobiography that she didn't want the role either and thought the film was going to bomb, due to the fact that many aspects of it were not prepared (the final script, the music) and that Dana Andrews (also a second choice) prior to this film never had a role as a leading man. The portrait that was originally intended for the film was painted by the wife of director Rouben Mamoulian, who was initially hired for the film but was fired by Preminger who was producing it. Paintings don't transcribe well to film so a touched-up photograph of Tierney was used as the portrait. Preminger took the directing himself. He wanted to use the song "Sophisticated Lady" by Duke Ellington as the musical score, but David Raksin made a deal with him, in which he would write a score Preminger would approve of in one weekend. Raksin claimed he kept looking at a photo of Tierney during the composition of the score and that she was his inspiration. Thus second choices made this movie a classic.

The dialogue is witty and biting, particularly that of Lydecker. The film was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor (Webb), Best Black and White Cinematography and Best Musical Score. It only won for Best Cinematography, and I'd like to learn what films aced it in the other categories. Although awards are not considered important by many film connoisserus, the winners are the ones recognized by the next generation. Thus "Laura" remains one of the most underrated films of all time.

I saw this movie at least ten times. First time was in my early teens, when it was shown on local TV. I never heard of Gene Tierney before, but after seeing this film, I knew I would never forget her. She was the most beautiful actress I ever saw and her mannerisms reveal a classy keen intelligence. Everything about this movie will haunt you--Tierney's beauty, the musical score by David Raksin, the portrait, and the ending.

The film is about a woman who seemed to have everything--a successful career, beauty, brains, wealth--who is discovered murdered in her apartment. A detective, Mark McPherson, played by Dana Andrews investigates the case and starts questioning possible suspects. One is the Svengali-like Waldo Lydecker (Clifton Webb), a syndicated columnist and radio personality. Another is Shelby Carpenter, a smooth Southern gigolo played by Vincent Price (yes Vincent Price!). And there's Laura's middle-aged socialite aunt, Ann Treadwell, who was using Carpenter as her boy-toy until Carpenter meets Laura. Other possible suspect is Laura's maid, a feisty loyal Irishwoman.

The film shows narrated flashbacks by Lydecker. He idolizes her and intercepts Laura's suitors, all of whom he considers beneath her. He couldn't intercept Carpenter who attracts Laura, and who Laura was supposed to marry the week she was found murdered. The first twist of the film is when McPherson falls in love with Laura, who's presumed dead. From reading her diary and letters and continuously seeing her portrait, he discovers she's the woman of his dreams, an unattainable goddess whose physical presence he can only imagine. So when twist number two happens, the murder investigation understandably becomes secondary to this gumshoe detective.

This is the best film directed by Otto Preminger. I believe it's the first American film he directed, and his following films pale by comparison. Ironically, this is a film full of second choices. The lead was written with Jennifer Jones in mind, but she turned it down. It was then offered to Heddy Lamarr who also turned it down. Tierney claimed in her autobiography that she didn't want the role either and thought the film was going to bomb, due to the fact that many aspects of it were not prepared (the final script, the music) and that Dana Andrews (also a second choice) prior to this film never had a role as a leading man. The portrait that was originally intended for the film was painted by the wife of director Rouben Mamoulian, who was initially hired for the film but was fired by Preminger who was producing it. Paintings don't transcribe well to film so a touched-up photograph of Tierney was used as the portrait. Preminger took the directing himself. He wanted to use the song "Sophisticated Lady" by Duke Ellington as the musical score, but David Raksin made a deal with him, in which he would write a score Preminger would approve of in one weekend. Raksin claimed he kept looking at a photo of Tierney during the composition of the score and that she was his inspiration. Thus second choices made this movie a classic.

The dialogue is witty and biting, particularly that of Lydecker. The film was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor (Webb), Best Black and White Cinematography and Best Musical Score. It only won for Best Cinematography, and I'd like to learn what films aced it in the other categories. Although awards are not considered important by many film connoisserus, the winners are the ones recognized by the next generation. Thus "Laura" remains one of the most underrated films of all time.