REVIEW: Righteous Kill

RIGHTEOUS KILL
By: Lee Rice

Two screen legends unite in ‘Righteous Kill,’ a film that stars Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino as two police detectives desperately trying to find a serial killer that is targeting the city’s criminal element.

It’s an almost undeniable fact that everyone likes both Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino. Even the people that don’t like either will grudgingly admit that they have a lot of acting talent. Either actor can elevate a film from simply passable to something memorable, and possibly worth a second viewing.

Why then, does ‘Righteous Kill’ seem so horribly bland despite the best efforts of both great men?

They play off one another well, and DeNiro manages to add a hint of desperation to his role as Turk, a cop who may be the murderer, may be covering for somebody, or may be an innocent man trying to clear his name; and Pacino brings his usual devilish charm to his role as Turk’s partner, Rooster. However, for some reason, the film feels like a downward-spiraling mishmash of loose plot threads, blatant red herrings, and attempts to conceal the identity of the killer that feel less like natural mystery than a thick fog of bad writing.

Do DeNiro and Pacino manage to make the movie the better for their presence?

Absolutely.

Does the supporting cast provide a believable world for the detectives to work in?

Again, yes.

John Leguizamo, although not the greatest actor alive, still manages to bring his role as a fellow detective convinced that Turk is the killer to life.

The problem is mostly with the long, meandering plot that’s just smart enough to keep the audience interested, but just dumb enough to keep them scratching their heads.

The audience will probably guess who the killer is halfway through, but the continual onslaught of pointless twists will have you either doubting your own common sense, or wondering at how the main characters ever managed to become detectives in the first place.

And then, topping it all off like some sort of rotten cherry is the ending. O.K., it provides closure and it makes sense, but when you stop to ask yourself why the killer would choose the M.O. he did, why he would make most of the moves he did, and most of all why he would try to frame who he did; the whole thing falls apart and you realize that most of the plot elements were introduced just to conceal the killer’s identity and don’t actually seem to fit with the killer’s personality or lead anywhere.

DeNiro and Pacino are their usual wonderful selves, and anybody who wants to see them in the same movie won’t be disappointed, but anybody expecting anything more than that, including a cohesive plot, a thrilling narrative, thread, or anything resembling rational coherence may want to go elsewhere.

Final Verdict- C-