I saw this movie at the AFI Festival in Hollywood, and it struck me as an incredibly sophisticated work of film-making. Chris Fisher took what could be a tired genre -- the corrupt cop story -- and by focusing on the psychology of the characters, breathed new life into it. Cuba Gooding, Jr.'s portrayal of a cop who has lost his moorings is mesmerizing, funny, heartbreaking, very engaging. But it is Clifton Collins, Jr. who represents the moral center of this movie. An incredible performance, the best I've seen in years. A gang-banger stricken with an attack of conscience. Fisher sets up a brutal world and then finds a glint of light in it. I mean, it's easy to behave morally in a sheltered, safe, middle-class environment. But these cops -- the movie is based on the L.A. Rampart scandal -- must confront a violent, deadly, compromised landscape at every turn. What I most liked about Dirty is that it was an action movie that didn't require you to leave your brains at the door.
