Review of Broken City (2013) by Jay L — 07 Jul 2013

"Proof Can Be A Powerful Weapon.".

A highly enjoyable film, a brass-knuckle, brute-force and tough as nails crime/thriller that pushes you to your limit. An astonishing, edge of your seat, white knuckle thrill ride that keeps the medal to the medal and pumps badassness in full force throughout. A highly stylized, intricate, cerebral and all-out effective crime thriller. A sleek, slick and diabolical thriller that sucks you in from the start, it's an engaging, enticing and all-out blast of urban corruption and scandal. Director Allen Hughes (From Hell, The Book Of Eli) delivers yet another fantastic film that he can add to his resume. An atmospheric and downright intriguing tale of greed, obsession, deception and cover-ups, it demands your attention all the way through the entire runtime. Hughes and company unleash a seriously gripping, downright absorbing, thought-provoking white knuckle roller coaster of a film that twists and turns and twists some more, and then when it seems the psychological madness can't possibly be delivered, it delivers yet more twists. A deceptively clever, flamboyantly stylish, tremendously slick, endlessly snappy and astoundingly entertaining thriller. Critics and audiences were torn on this film, but it held my attention with the power of a vice grip throughout.

Mark Wahlberg just keeps getting better and better, this guy has transformed from an absolute Hollywood disaster to a fantastic leading man and A-lister, he delivers an excellent performance. Russell Crowe delivers a darker, more sinister role than he is accustomed to, but as usual he is fantastic and owns the screen in his scenes, he's truly a commanding force in every role. Catherine Zeta-Jones is superb. Barry Pepper never disappoints either. A great all around addition to the crime/thriller genre.