By: debbie lynn elias
With a well worn premise of “good cop gone bad trying to be good but now facing a redemptive price” and a cast of established genre heavyweights like James Woods, Stephen Dorff, David Boreanaz, Dominic Purcell and Walton Goggins, OFFICER DOWN should be a much anticipated release. Unfortunately, the film bypassed theatres and went straight from the Dubai Film festival to DVD/Blu-Ray. However, after seeing the film, I understand why, as despite the excellence of the individual performances, the film as a whole is convoluted and uneven, wasting the talent of the actors. Having said that, given its being more of a psychological drama turned taut thriller than cop action flick, if you can make it past a very slow first act and get to the third, your patience will be handsomely rewarded.
As Detective David “Cal” Callahan, Stephen Dorff excels with tacit intensity and introspection. Having fallen from grace into the pitfalls of strippers, drugs and alcohol, Callahan was given a second chance when an unknown “angel” saved him after a drug deal gone bad/traffic stop that left Callahan shot and dying in a seedy industrial part of town. With a loving wife and daughter at home, Callahan embraced this second chance, turning his life around both personally and professionally. But as we all know, there are no free rides and the day would come when Callahan would have to pay for his salvation.
And pay he does when contacted by his “angel”. A Russian immigrant claiming to be Callahan’s angel emerges seeking repayment from Callahan “outside the law” for the death of his daughter. Found in the young woman’s possessions is a journal detailing a life of which no father wants to know. Drugs, stripping, rapes, murders – and all linked to a club owned by crime boss Royce Walker, the same club that Callahan frequented during his days of decadence, a world that is also front and center in a current police investigation and into which Callahan effortlessly retreats. While Dorff easily masters the hard unkempt edge of Callahan, surprising and refreshing is the paternal joy he brings in scenes with Beatrice Miller who plays teenaged daughter, Lanie.
Calling the shots of Callahan’s “legitimate” investigation of the current string of rapes and murders are Captain Verona, his immediate supervisor Jake LaRussa and fellow detective Les Scanlon. As Verona, the incomparable James Woods oozes two-faced untrustworthiness and a hidden agenda. Veteran Stephen Lang makes La Russa a sympathetic supporter of Callahan while David Boreanaz pulls fast one, playing Scanlon as one who could be playing both sides of the fence. Familiar and comfortable to Bones viewers, Boreanaz makes the most of his time on screen and while we readily accept him as law enforcement, he sets the head spinning with questions of Scanlon’s true self. Dominic Purcell is commanding as Royce Walker, but the most intriguing performance comes from Walton Goggins who soars with complexity as a detective from another precinct in league with Verona. Ah, the plot thickens.
Directed by actor turned director, Brian A. Miller, and written by John Chase, although predictable, OFFICER DOWN has some surprising twists and turns, particularly with the characters, that begin to develop and take shape midway in the film. Key to piecing together Callahan’s prior corruption are flashbacks that vacillate between foggy haze and clear as day; in other words, sometimes they work and sometimes they just add to the first and second act muddle. Color palette is tonally inconsistent and emotionally unsure, often distracting from the story itself, although interesting camera angles add to the tension.
Again, while there is nothing unpredictable about the film’s ultimate conclusion, the twists and turns reel you into the intrigue before showing all the cards.
Directed by Brian A. Miller
Written by John Chase
Cast: James Woods, Stephen Dorff, David Boreanaz, Stephen Lang, Dominic Purcell and Walton Goggins
