Righteous Kill
review by Mervius

We've seen Oscar winners Robert De Niro and Al Pacino acting together only once before, in Michael Mann's 1995 crime drama Heat. (They were both in The Godfather: Part II as well, but didn't share screen time.) Now the two acclaimed thespians have reunited for Righteous Kill, director Jon Avnet's injection of serial killer suspense into the buddy cop drama.

Our two hammy leads play Turk and Rooster, respectively, long-time detective partners who are trying to track down a serial killer. An intriguing problem arises when it's learned that the victims of this murderer can all be demonstrated to have some degree of relationship with Turk, either in his professional cases or his personal past.

Perhaps that little item is neither here nor there, since the movie opens with Turk himself apparently confessing to these crimes. But one must wonder whether the story he's telling is entirely honest, since flashbacks of Turk's crimes - seen only from the killer's point of view, and not including his voice - do not themselves include any acknowledgement of the killer's identity. In this regard, the movie announces immediately that it may not be entirely forthright. (more...)

Righteous Kill
review by Kevin Farley

There are certainly many things people will be talking about when it comes to Righteous Kill, a twisty neo-noir that tracks cops and killers inside and around the NYPD. A large wannabe gangster crowd will probably be all worked up over the gritty, pulpy treatment of the well-worn subject matter. I think that a decent amount of people will be talking about the possibility of this picture becoming this year’s The Departed.

I have a sneaking suspicion that most of the fanboy buzz and box office cash generated by this picture will probably be due to the fact that it’s done something that only two films prior have been able to do: pair up Al Pacino and Robert De Niro.
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