Bad Lieutenant

Abel Ferrara's Bad Lieutenant is one of the darkest films I have ever seen. I don't mean dark in the way that it was shot, but in the subject matter of the film. The movie is about a cop who is probably the lowest scumball in the history of modern cinema and how he tries to find redemption in solving the case of a nun who is raped inside a Catholic church. The film is very graphic and terribly depressing but that doesn't make it a bad film. It is well written, well edited by Anthony Redman, well shot by Ken Kelsch and very well directed by Abel Ferrara. The cast is pretty insignificant when you consider the whole film is about Harvey Keitel's character. Keitel is the complete center of this movie and he holds it together. His performance is one of the best in recent movie history and this film is worth watching just to see how far Keitel will go for his art.

People are probably right enough when they comment that this entire film essentially hinges on Harvey Kietel's impassioned performance as the corrupt and deeply troubled lieutenant of the title. Which shouldn't necessarily be taken as a shortcoming - an engrossing lead is the one key thing that any one-man character study like this needs in order to flourish, after all. Whether sobbing, howling or clenching his jaws in anguish, or else hanging his head and sipping liquor in silence, his acting here is always raw, convincing and utterly compelling; the kind of portrayal you'd be hard-pressed to take your eyes off. The exact identity of his character is never revealed, but the title informs us he's a 'bad lieutenant', a label seemingly confirmed by his tendency to indulge in substance abuse, work up heavy gambling debts and even, on occasion, pull over a couple of young female drivers and use them as motivation for his own self-pleasure. Very lurid, and yet the way that Kietel plays him also makes feel completely human. He conveys such pain and desperation behind his each and every immoral action that they never come across as nearly as shocking or vulgar to watch as they are harrowing. It's this alone that enables 'Bad Lieutenant' as a whole to reach the true extent of its potential - what could easily be read off as a plethora of fury, drug-taking, masturbation and full-frontal nudity in practice translates very aptly into a sad and striking depiction of a despondent man who's lost his ability to see goodness in anything in life, and who's sinking ever deeper beneath the weight of all those answers being continuously sought in the wrong places. As you've probably worked out by now, this isn't exactly the balmiest movie you could spending your time with (might be wrong, but I don't think there's a single light-hearted moment to be found in the entire screenplay), but if you can bring yourself to look past the sourness on the surface and instead feel sympathy for this bad lieutenant, as Kietel's involving performance invites us to do, then you'll find some considerable power lurking in its bleakness.

So, while it's Harvey Kietel who really (and rightly) brings things together in 'Bad Lieutenant' and makes it the affecting near-masterpiece that it is, it would be unfair of me to completely overlook Ferrara's role in this equation. He's provided the context against which our centrepiece man must function - a world so run-down, sombre and nihilistic that trying to find redemption round here seems not only impossible, but practically pointless. The mood is well-set by the ever-overcast skies; killing, rape and robbery are rampant, and the Lt isn't exactly given a great deal to aspire to in his day-to-day life. Kietel and his character are admittedly the only things here that come off as particularly outstanding - the vast majority of supporting characters are really all just part of this one big daunting backdrop, with dialogue, screen time and development kept to a strict minimum in each case - though personally I look at this as being more of an additional strength than as a weakness. That everyone else around him always seems so distant only increases the overall feelings of detachment and isolation that draw us deeper into the Lt's outlook.

Christian faith and symbolism are pretty integral to the overall themes of this movie, but even being non-religious myself I find I can still get a good deal of emotional investment in it. It delivers its underlying issues - of non-judgement and the potential for goodness in even the most repellent of sinners - with acute precision, as reflected in the investigation concerning the raping of a young nun which the plot loosely revolves around. While this heinous crime only serves to strengthen the Lt's belief in the general depravity of the world around him, the nun herself has found solace in her refusal to condemn those who wronged her, viewing them instead as victims as their own confusion and despair. There are of course some fairly sharp parallels between this scenario and the Lt's own personal predicament, which any viewer who's really come to feel for him will recognise - as displeasing as some of the things he himself gets up to may be (and the way he incorporates further crime into his efforts to uphold the law), there's that challenge lying at the centre of every scene as to whether or not we're really in any position to pass judgement upon him. All things considered, is it truly a bad lieutenant that he is at heart or just, well, a sad one?

I don't imagine that everyone will quite take to the conclusion this eventually leads to (and which I'm not going to give away here), but considering just how weighty a lot of the issues it addresses really are, you never get the impression that Ferrara ever intended to come up with a cut-and-dried solution of any sorts. Instead, he and Kietel have put together a polished and powerful piece of film-making that, though it deals with some pretty disagreeable and, at the time at least, controversial subject matter, is so rich in great acting (well, one great performance, but it's easily worth the input of an entire cast) and slick atmospherics that it becomes entirely captivating. In the end, it's the surprising amount of depth and emotional muscle that it carries, and not the notorious reputation that it garnered, that 'Bad Lieutenant' really deserves to be remembered for - and remembered I hope it always will be. Another great in early 90s cinema.

Grade: A

BAD LIEUTENANT / (1992) ***1/2 (out of four)

By Blake French:

Abel Ferrara's "Bad Lieutenant" could be a solid tale of spiritual redemption if not for the pervasive material through which the film demonstrates its immorality. It contrasts the most disturbing, obscene human behavior with compassion and forgiveness, but the extreme nature of the content and the film's insistence on it's portrayal swindles the spiritual impact. For once a movie deserves the notorious NC-17 rating-the Motion Picture Association of America's most restrictive emblem placed on movies submitted for a rating-but the story contains a message that's more humble and spiritual than most inoffensive productions about spirituality.

These filmmakers may or may not realize the potential religious impact their product is capable of achieving. It's a very religious film; churches could use this to demonstrate the power of forgiveness and the strength of God's love. Unfortunately many audiences will misinterpret the graphic adult content and strong language as excessively dirty-but this is not a dirty movie. The content is necessary for the exceptional contrast to work. It displays the goodness in people through their wrong doings. Though I still wouldn't recommend gathering the kids around to watch this movie.

Harvey Keitel plays a character whom the movie calls only "Bad Lieutenant." He's at a stage in his life when human characteristics no longer matter. Filled with fury, need, and depression, his temporary remedies-sex, drugs, and gambling-no longer fulfill his hunger for pleasure. But his family doesn't care anymore. He drops his kids off for school, does bad things during the day, and comes home to collapse on the couch at night. This character does not imagine himself as anything but bad. He interrupts a grocery store robbery only to let the thieves go on a bribe. He buys drugs from drug dealers in exchange for their immunity. He stops a pair of young women in a car only to blackmail them into an unpleasant form of verbal rape.

The story takes a twist. Several low lives brutally rape a young nun. The nun, who knows her rapists, refuses to reveal their identities because she forgives them for their crime. The bad lieutenant cannot believe a victim can forgive such an atrocity. If this woman can forgive her debtors, could anyone forgive his sins as well?

Whether the bad lieutenant turns his life around I will leave you to discover. But this idea might be a side issue in the plot. "Bad Lieutenant" displays more of an interest in the dirty lifestyle of the title character than in his decision to seek forgiveness for his sins. Only during the final minutes does Keitel's character realize his choices. Surprisingly, however, the film's ending takes the easy way out in a complete refusal to look redemption in the eye. This ending blends in with the events because of stark, honest realism, but we never comprehend the character's intentions for the future.

Dark and cringe-inducing, "Bad Lieutenant" is not a fun movie to watch and don't expect to hold your popcorn down if you walk in unprepared. Abel Ferrara and Zoe Lund wrote the script looking into deep, private crevices of the human soul. They travel to places many people will find extremely uncomfortable. It's a harrowing character study portrayed through an unreserved, courageous performance. Harvey Keitel takes a huge risk here-most actors would not want such a character to follow their public image. But Keitel does not hesitate to characterize the bad lieutenant without compromise, mercy, or restraint.

Hats off to you, Harvey.

In New York, a corrupt and abusive NYPD Lieutenant (Harvey Keitel) is addicted in drugs and gambling and has a great debt with a shark. He takes advantage of his authority to make deals with drug dealers and criminals to get drugs and dirty money and his bookmaker advises him that he owes money to dangerous people. When a nun is brutally raped by two youngsters, the Lieutenant chases the criminals but the nun tells him that she had forgiven the punks. The Lieutenant is affected by her religious principles and asks Jesus to help him.

"Bad Lieutenant" is one of my favorite films by Abel Ferrara with a great story of addiction, corruption, forgiveness and redemption. Last time I had seen this film was on 27 September 2000 and after seeing once again, I realize that "Bad Lieutenant" is a timeless movie that has not aged. Harvey Keitel has one of the best performances of his successful career in the role of a dirty cop that finds redemption in the end. Unfortunately this film is only available on VHS in Brazil. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Vício Frenético" "Frantic Addiction")

Note: On 21 February 2017, I saw this film again.

What more can I say? Keitel gives an astounding performance. Then again, when has he let us down? I was able to find some interesting parallels to "Mean Streets." Aside from the use of "Pledging my Love" by Johnny Ace, it explores the theme of Catholic guilt and how one's temptation and hunger for evil can weaken spiritual judgments. The climactic scene is great, in which Keitel (literally) comes face to face with Jesus. I wasn't a big fan of "Mean Streets" and think this film better explores its Catholic themes. One may perceive this film to be sinful, and it received tons of controversy. It's very rare that a movie is able to show rape of a nun, and get away Scott-free with the MPAA. I think the NC-17 rating was mostly on account of the explicit nudity and sex. I don't know why the hell people are trying to scare viewers by regarding this movie as "graphically violent." About all we really see are aftermaths of violence. However, the language is extremely blunt, and that's about the only warning I can give. Of course, religious activists might protest its use of footage of Jesus on a cross and the aforementioned rape scene, but they simply have to look closer at what message Ferrara is trying to bring out. Cinema is an art form often misjudged by the prudish. The scene where Keitel pulls the two young girls over is classic, and I loved its darkly humorous element.

"Bad Lieutenant" is an impressive character study, and though it occasionally gets meandering and repetitive and seems to be missing something (which I might be able to identify on a second viewing), it's a moving story with terrific acting. I wasn't too thrilled with the other Ferrara pieces I've seen, "King of New York" and "The Funeral," but I was younger and I think I just had trouble understanding the subtle messages he delivers in his films. Of course, he specializes in gritty urban dramas like this, being a Bronx native what do you expect, so something like "Bad Lieutenant" naturally wouldn't appeal to general audiences. It's unpleasant, though somewhat humorous, but life can be the same way. You can't spend your whole life watching "The Wizard of Oz." Every once in a while, you have to take a break and watch graphic character studies like this and learn a little something. After seeing this movie, I'm curious about checking out some more of Ferrara's work, because I know he has talent.

I can tell this a movie I will have to watch again, because it's not easily understood the first time around, but I'm sure there's hidden messages that just flew over my head. I still think the film could've had more substance, but it's still an impressive work.

My score: 7 (out of 10)