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STEPHEN'S MOVIE GUIDE

reviews

STEPHEN'S MOVIE GUIDE

Righteous Kill (2008)

Review: written Nov 2009

Director makes an unholy mess of Rightwous Kill

Righteous Kill (2008)

Apart from the cast, there's really very little to separate this from a whole slew of straight to DVD thrillers. Which makes it all the more a mystery why DeNiro and Pacino chose this as their next vehicle to star in together, having created such screen heat in.. well, Heat.

DeNiro and Pacino are both cops, both veterans (well, they'd have to be wouldn't they...) who end up investigating a vigilante serial killer. As the clues start to appear, suspicion grows that the killer is in fact a cop.. so who can be trusted, and just who is telling the truth...?

Well, that's the set up, but it's great potential is somehow fumbled. The tag line of `the two best actors alive at the top of their game' is certainly somewhat overstated, but the fault does not lie there - rather it is in a weak story directed in such a straight-forward way that red herrings are just rather too obvious. It's really not that bad, and has its own stylistic flourishings along the way - however it is also not half as clever as it seems to think it is, and the ending is unlikely to surprise anyone. Fortunately it is only 97 minutes so does not overstay its welcome too long. Certainly bearable for an undemanding watch, but when you factor in the disappointment factor of having two such great stars so sorely underused, this really comes down a notch or two in the satisfaction stakes.

Righteous Kill (2008)-01




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