Review of Bad Lieutenant (1992) by Darryl S — 09 May 2015

This film is hard... hard to the core. It is gritty, seedy, subversive, untainted by cinematic stylization, gut wrenching and above all genuine. The highlight of the film, of which not even the hardest of heads can discount, is Harvey Keitel's astounding, balls to the wall no bars hold performance as the "Bad Lieutenant." A man who not only has no name in the film, but is equally as empty inside, degenerative and amoralistic to where one finds it hard pressed whether to hate him or feel immense pity and sorrow--not just for his character, but for the archetype he represents in our society.

Another thematic element that brings Bad Lieutenant beyond a character study of a disturbed individual is the element of redemption (particularly of the Christian faith, but an abstraction which spreads to humanity), find salvation in the midst of corruption, turning "bitter semen into fertile sperm" as the raped nun appropriately phrases.

Keitel's character piques at the end when he has a most memorable melt down in front of an unflinching image of Jesus Christ. This Christ turns out to be a hallucination which in turn helps him find personal redemption, but whether it is enough to cure his emptiness is highly questionable.

Justice is ultimately served on all ends. The film concludes appropriately on a grim note. Director Abel Ferrara outdid himself as did all other cast and crew in this seminal film, arguably one of the darkest gems of the 90's and one of the great cult films of all time.

Some are bound to be turned away by its NC-17 amoralistic content and decadence, but accepting this in tandem with the underlying themes of redemption and resolution is what makes this a classic.