The most recent film from action director Antoine Fuqua, Brooklyn’s Finest is the story of three seemingly unconnected cops walking the Brooklyn beat. Ethan Hawke plays a detective with money problems, namely buying a house for his pregnant wife and apparently unending stream of children. Don Cheadle plays an undercover drug peddler who is asked to put the job before friends and family. And of course lastly there is Richard Gere, a burn-out who is a week away from putting in his retirement after 22 years.
Clichés, for sure, but tried and true ones that seem to keep working. Though Richard Gere never says he’s getting too old for this stuff, it is written all over his face. Don Cheadle plays a street level Donnie Brasco perfectly, and Ethan Hawke is decidedly less whiny than usual as a cop tempted by cash.
All in all, Brooklyn’s Finest features good performances throughout. The film looks good, the story moves well into the third act, then disaster. You see where everyone was headed, and it all kind of makes sense, but somehow it’s not very satisfying.
It’s an alright film. Cheadle is good, Hawke is decent, and Gere, well… Gere’s in love with a hooker again. Is it the world’s worst nod to Pretty Woman, or did they just not think about it? Did Richard Gere read the script and say, “Hmm, deja vu”?
I digress.
Bottom line, it’s a straight OK. The performances and filmmaking do well, but the story is kind of a let down. – [DVD] [Blu-Ray]
Action/Crime/Drama/Thriller
Rated R
DVD Release Date: 7/6/10