Review of L.A. Takedown (1989) by Jason C — 09 May 2012

Having seen Heat several times it is impossible to review L.A. Takedown without making comparisons. Many of the good ideas that formed the basis of Heat are present here but they are often ragged in this incarnation and sometimes feel incidental. Heat is a fully fleshed out rendition of this story, the film-making, the acting and the scripting are all superior. Obviously this isn't as slick as the 1995 film but the 90 minute runtime also means less character development which in turn means we don't get to invest in the characters in the same way.

Heat aside there are still problems with L.A. Takedown. Xander berkeley, who I generally like, is horribly miscast. His character is intended to be menacing, it just looks like he's pretending so it's difficult to take him seriously. The dialogue is decidedly ropey, although in the context of a 1980's TV cop thriller it fits, in an odd way. The two leads are adequate and as with the dialogue, they fit in with the aesthetics of the film as a whole.

Perhaps the comparisons with Heat aren't fair given the production values of each film but it does serve to highlight that remakes, if used correctly, can be useful.