An immensely rough experience from a viewing standpoint, and a difficult one to resolve from a critical one, "Bad Lieutenant" is a harrowing tale of a decaying man as his life spirals out of control in a brutal, and often shocking, fashion. Lasting only ninety-six minutes but feeling much longer, "Bad Lieutenant" sucks you in to what you believe at first to be the tale of a crooked cop before the realisation slowly dawns upon the viewer that this is going to be much more unpleasant than any "gritty" 'corrupt police officer' film that you'll have seen before. "Bad Lieutenant" is the systematic and compulsive destruction of the nameless protagonist in a film which can have you feeling as emetic as Harvey Keitel's character does on screen.
Any viewer who watches this film under the delusion that Keitel's character is anywhere near comparable to his "Mr White" in "Reservoir Dogs" will find themselves in for the shock of their lives. In what is undoubtedly his most sublime on screen acting performance Keitel conveys believability by endowing his character with a harsh sense of reality leaving the cinematographic term "gritty" to be definitively redefined. The Lieutenant played is not merely a corrupt cop but a man who has no control over reality, a man who is an addict on all levels as he corrodes his body with the ridiculous amount of drugs consumed throughout, and burns a hole in his wallet as he gambles uncontrollably. He is a man losing his mind minute by minute, who finds himself digging a deeper and deeper pit for what is seemingly an inevitable grave.
While being probably one of the most upsettingly disturbing stories in cinematic history, the one key criticism from most is the perceived wafer-thin plot that accompanies the grandeur of Keitel. In what is ostensibly a side story, but dove tails nicely into the "Lieutenants" tale, a nun is raped by two individuals that she herself teaches and looks after at the Catholic church and school she is apart of. Frankie Thorn as the nun, is the antithesis to Keitel's lieutenant. She commands the screen with a contemplative sense of redemption, a woman that has so little, who is then abused ruthlessly, and yet is still willing to forgive those that committed the horrors against her. As Keitel investigates, interspersed heavily with gambling, drug taking and the occasional abuse of his police powers, the link between our two key characters is slowly revealed, as Keitel is shown watching his daughter receive her first Holy Communion at the Catholic church he attends, all the while orchestrating another bet with his bookie beside him. The interesting juxtaposition is subtle while sledgehammer blatant. Keitel wears a cross around his neck and for him is the cross he bears, the shadowing hanging over him, throughout the film. It is a reminder of a previous life, and also a reminder of what he could, and can be. The further into the mire he sinks, the more he references his religious beliefs and uses them to try and convince others, while mainly himself, of his righteous creed, all the while the recovering nun draws upon her belief as a means of strength, rationale and justification.
"Bad Lieutenant" is not your usual good cop gone wrong tale, and I would heavily warn those that are expecting shoot outs at dawn to stay well clear. "Bad Lieutenant" is a tale of realisation and redemption but primarily of the abuse and corruption of the human body and spirit. Keitel's character comes across as someone that tried to do the right thing yet finds himself spiraling downward while one of the more interesting points is the sense of restraint he gives his character, that for all his drug taking and gambling addiction, that he despises himself for it, that he wishes he weren't doing it, and more importantly that he has no fun doing it, but that it has just come habit. "Bad Lieutenant" is a hard hitting film which will uppercut those not ready for it into a depressive coma, because to be frank, "Bad" doesn't begin to cover how far removed from "Bad" the "Lieutenant" is.
Any viewer who watches this film under the delusion that Keitel's character is anywhere near comparable to his "Mr White" in "Reservoir Dogs" will find themselves in for the shock of their lives. In what is undoubtedly his most sublime on screen acting performance Keitel conveys believability by endowing his character with a harsh sense of reality leaving the cinematographic term "gritty" to be definitively redefined. The Lieutenant played is not merely a corrupt cop but a man who has no control over reality, a man who is an addict on all levels as he corrodes his body with the ridiculous amount of drugs consumed throughout, and burns a hole in his wallet as he gambles uncontrollably. He is a man losing his mind minute by minute, who finds himself digging a deeper and deeper pit for what is seemingly an inevitable grave.
While being probably one of the most upsettingly disturbing stories in cinematic history, the one key criticism from most is the perceived wafer-thin plot that accompanies the grandeur of Keitel. In what is ostensibly a side story, but dove tails nicely into the "Lieutenants" tale, a nun is raped by two individuals that she herself teaches and looks after at the Catholic church and school she is apart of. Frankie Thorn as the nun, is the antithesis to Keitel's lieutenant. She commands the screen with a contemplative sense of redemption, a woman that has so little, who is then abused ruthlessly, and yet is still willing to forgive those that committed the horrors against her. As Keitel investigates, interspersed heavily with gambling, drug taking and the occasional abuse of his police powers, the link between our two key characters is slowly revealed, as Keitel is shown watching his daughter receive her first Holy Communion at the Catholic church he attends, all the while orchestrating another bet with his bookie beside him. The interesting juxtaposition is subtle while sledgehammer blatant. Keitel wears a cross around his neck and for him is the cross he bears, the shadowing hanging over him, throughout the film. It is a reminder of a previous life, and also a reminder of what he could, and can be. The further into the mire he sinks, the more he references his religious beliefs and uses them to try and convince others, while mainly himself, of his righteous creed, all the while the recovering nun draws upon her belief as a means of strength, rationale and justification.
"Bad Lieutenant" is not your usual good cop gone wrong tale, and I would heavily warn those that are expecting shoot outs at dawn to stay well clear. "Bad Lieutenant" is a tale of realisation and redemption but primarily of the abuse and corruption of the human body and spirit. Keitel's character comes across as someone that tried to do the right thing yet finds himself spiraling downward while one of the more interesting points is the sense of restraint he gives his character, that for all his drug taking and gambling addiction, that he despises himself for it, that he wishes he weren't doing it, and more importantly that he has no fun doing it, but that it has just come habit. "Bad Lieutenant" is a hard hitting film which will uppercut those not ready for it into a depressive coma, because to be frank, "Bad" doesn't begin to cover how far removed from "Bad" the "Lieutenant" is.