Review of Narc (2002) by Stephen E — 30 Sep 2011

Not only is Narc is a great crime-thriller, but it is also a great character study. It's characters are mortal, it's characters are flawed, and their choices between values aren't depicted in black and white, but in gritty shades of gray.

The lead in this film is played by Jason Patric (who has a familiar name but not a familiar face) and he plays his character perfectly. Here is a man with past drug abuse and a case that he botched. Because of this, he has been suspended from the force.

Now, this is routine for police movies like this. There is always a misbegotten past that the lead carries around with them like a ball and chain, and they experience the after-effects of that past every day. But it's the way that Patric plays his part so realistically that makes this a tense watch. And up until those final moments, where I sat with bated breath, waiting and watching, Patric convinced the hell out of me.

There is another great performance from a man that is not-so-great in many other movies, and that man is Ray Liotta. Here he plays the trigger-happy renegade cop who spends half of the movie either foaming at the mouth, hurling the f-word from his mouth twenty times a minute or standing in calm silence until he jumps upon a lowlife and beats the hell from them.

Now, this type of bats-in-the-belfry character is prevalent in many movies. There is many an actor that has played this kind of character before, and Ray Liotta is the best that I have seen (yes, even better than Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast). His portrayal of Henry Oak is incredibly convincing and captivating.

Are the two lead performances the only reason to watch this movie? No. Joe Carnahan (who I don't find admirable) does a great job with directing., even through the financial strain that he, and the rest of the crew, went under while making this movie. There is plenty of that gritty, Michael Mann-style camerawork that makes the whole thing seem more visceral and realistic.

For those people who grow tired of seeing the same police procedurals show up in the theaters every other month or so, I am on your side.

Narc is not one of those movies.