Running time: 100 minutes
Starring: Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, John Leguizamo, Donnie Wahlberg, Brian Dennehy, Carla Gugino
Rating 5 out of 10
The long-awaited big screen pairing of Robert De Niro and Al Pacino turns out to be something of a damp squib in this rather jaded and old-fashioned cop thriller. Although the two soon-to-be old timers provide most of the entertainment on offer, they are left floundering with a script that does no justice to their talent. De Niro is Turk and Pacino Rooster, two cops approaching retirement and able to make plenty of jokes about the fact. 'We've put in 120 years on the force', says Turk. 'We're ready to play shuffleboard', quips Rooster. But, just to balance things out, they are both sexually involved with a woman 30 years their junior (Carla Gugino), and in one of the film's more embarrassing scenes, they lift weights vigorously in the gym with their junior counterparts.
It turns out that there is a serial killer in town, with the twist (at least the screenwriter would like us to think it is a twist) being that he is taking out the city's lowlives: the pimps, rapists and drug dealers. Instead of seeing this as a boon to their policing efforts, the big boss (Brian Dennehy) orders our erstwhile heroes to investigate. Before you can scream 'It's obvious whodunnit' at the screen the two of them are involved in a needlessly complex procedural, which at one point sees the them take on the might of Curtis '50 Cents' Jackson in his biggest screen role to date.
I was reminded of the 1983 caper Tough Guys which saw Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas slugging it out as ageing gangsters. It was sad to see two of Hollywood's great leading men in material that was beyond their physical capabilities. In a few years' time De Niro and Pacino won't be able to do this kind of role any more, but while they can it's a shame that it is with such ropey material.
Director Jon Avnet - responsible for Pacino's recent effort 88 Minutes which was mauled by critics and ignored by the public in the US - does an unremarkable job, and seems to concentrate on making everything very dark. Every time De Niro has a solo scene, Pacino has one that appears to be exactly the same length, as if this was a contract stipulation. Pacino admitted at the film's opening that the duo would love to work together again - if that is the case let's hope they find a better script.
Paul Hurley
