28 Years Later, Best Neo-Noir Drama Ever Made With 99% on RT Is Finally Available on Hulu
This is one of the last representatives of the genre that won two Oscars and is hated by the author of the original novel.
A detective in a raincoat and hat, a blonde seductress, a brunette savior, rain and Dutch angles – film noir triumphed in the 1940s, but in its pure form it lasted barely a decade.
After World War II, the optimistic '50s arrived, and gloomy cinema simply went out of fashion. The situation changed in the 70s. Neo-noir hit the screens and largely rewrote the canon of the genre.
Often, even the best examples of pessimistic cinema failed to find its audience, but L.A. Confidential not only became a success, but also marked the end of neo-noir, eventually becoming a cult classic.
What Is L.A. Confidential About?
A shooting takes place in a small cafe. Civilians and retired Sergeant Stensland are killed. The culprits are found, but three detectives from different departments begin to have doubts about what happened.
Bud, Ed, and Jack serve under Captain Dudley Smith, they team up and work together to follow the thread of the investigation.
It leads them to something unexpected: Captain Smith is in charge of the underground business, and he is getting rid of the cops who are digging into closed cases.
L.A. Confidential Is One of the Last Classic Neo-Noirs
L.A. Confidential is the last bright representative of neo-noir in the 20th century, repeating all the canons of its black-and-white predecessors. In a sense, it marked the end of the detective era of the '40s and '50s, when neo-noirs began to experiment and move away from the usual frameworks.
Director Curtis Hanson's film looks like the ultimate modern film noir: a love letter to the cinema of the past and a sincere reflection on how the outdated genre is slowly dying.
The Adaptation Slightly Changed the Structure of the Narrative, Which Only Benefited the Movie
The movie is based on the book of the same name by James Ellroy, an author with whom few of his contemporaries can compete in creating a noir atmosphere in the pages of his works.
The original book is characterized by its slow narrative and complex structure, while the movie is sometimes even too straightforward, but this is also its strength – together with the neo-noir style, it coexists perfectly with a rather dynamic thriller that has had a significant influence on the genre.
L.A. Confidential Author Hates the Movie Adaptation
Surprisingly, L.A. Confidential, which received 99% from critics and 94% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes, as well as two Oscars, elicited nothing but contempt from the author of the original source.
At the Los Angeles Times Book Festival, James Ellroy spoke harshly about the movie version of his novel:
“I think it's turkey of the highest form. [...] The director [Curtis Hanson] died, so now I can disparage the movie.”
After Hanson's death in 2016, Ellroy was careful to share his mixed opinions on the film, which he called problematic, citing a fundamental disagreement with Curtis Hanson.
Where to Watch L.A. Confidential?
Regardless of the author's opinion, L.A. Confidential has become one of the greatest neo-noirs of all time. And now you can stream it online – the movie is now available on Hulu.
