Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 So we’re off down memory lane to watch Poole battle police corruption, hostile suspects and his antagonistic superiors. This bold debut from Sam Hawke is one of the best works of commerical fiction in recent years. REVIEWED By Matthew Monagle, Fri., March 26, 2021 Given the headlines surrounding Johnny Depp and police violence in America, you can be forgiven for thinking City of Lies … City Of Lies (2021) Movie Review! He was murdered in the street, in plain sight of numerous witnesses at a crowded intersection, and the cops can’t get anywhere in solving it? Directed by Brad Furman, the film features a cast that includes Johnny Depp, … MPAA Rating: R. Running time: 114 MIN. Know more about City of Lies movie Cast, Story, Release Date, Reviews, News, Teaser, Trailer, Photos and Video Gallery on Moviekoop. Production / Funding. On VOD on April 9th. Of course, as he digs into what Poole’s investigation unearthed, Jackson also becomes convinced that the Wallace case wasn’t solved for a reason: doing so would bring down the LAPD. (2021) News. City of Lies ( 2018) City of Lies. Series / Reviews. Any good journalist knows that they have to break a story to figure out the best way to tell it to their readers. Jackson needs information, while Poole — who believes that the L.A.P.D. City of Lies is more James Ellroy than docudrama, resulting in a tired police thriller that hitched its wagon to an untenable star. 18 March 2021; The Hollywood Reporter; Brad Furman’s City of Lies, a police procedural asking who killed Christopher “Notorious B.I.G.” Wallace, is set nearly two decades after that famous murder was given up by most as unsolvable. Box Office. It’s somehow all of the above, but not to a degree that any of these possible story approaches are satisfying. In theaters. “City of Lies” is too uneven to be a total success, but I’m impressed by the filmmaker’s commitment to such a project with such a large scale and emotionally charged material. The only thing that makes it seem larger than life are the identities of the victims, but Depp’s portrayal of a man lost to his obsession is dead on, and I was gripped by Poole’s tragic story. After two decades, the case remains open. Review: Depp plays ex-cop obsessed with Biggie murder in 'City of Lies' Forest Whitaker co-stars in film that's been sitting on shelf since 2018 Russell Poole and Jack Jackson investigate the murders of rappers Notorious B.I.G. Brad Furman’s “City of Lies” has been around since 2018, but without a theatrical release. Drama / Thriller; Rotten Tomatoes® Score 51% 81% Trailer Watchlist 2021; R; 110 min. “City of Lies” never bothered to do that. detective Russell Poole (Johnny Depp) has spent years trying to solve his biggest. TWITTER 3/19/2021 … Review: We (2021) Review: The Girl and the Spider (2021) Review: Taste (2021) Review: The Fam (2021) Review: What Do We See When We Look at the Sky? in that city. jeromereviews1994 biography , crime , Drama April 10, 2021 1 Minute Russell Poole and Jack Jackson investigate the murders of … In one of many lines of clichéd dialogue in “City of Lies,” Dayton Callie’s Lieutenant O’Shea tells his officer, Russell Poole, played by Johnny Depp, “I’ve told you a hundred f**king times, you’re off the Christopher Wallace case.” I would swear we heard the other 99 too. Addeddate 2021-04-23 17:24:41 Duration 2302 Identifier cotwboh-City_of_Twinsburg_Architectural_Review_Board_-_April_15_2021 Run time 00:38:22 Scanner Johnny Depp gave an exceptional performance here after Black Mass. Films / Reviews. At its core, “City of Lies” is about dual obsessions, that of a cop whose life was basically torn apart by the roadblocks he faced in his pursuit of justice for Voletta Wallace, the mother of the slain rapper, and that of a journalist who reaches out two decades after the murder when he’s asked to write an anniversary piece. Something that many would’ve assumed to be a given with stars like Johnny Depp and Forest Whitaker in the lead. and Russell Poole. Notorious B.I.G.) In one of many lines of clichéd dialogue in “City of Lies,” Dayton Callie’s Lieutenant O’Shea tells his officer, Russell Poole, played by Johnny Depp, “I’ve told you a hundred f**king times, you’re off the Christopher Wallace case.” I would swear we heard the other 99 too. ‘City of Lies’: Film Review. Into this psychological swamp comes Jack Jackson (Forest Whitaker), a journalist who’s working on a 20-year retrospective of the crimes. He’s easily the best thing about “City of Lies,” although engaging character work by always welcome players like Toby Huss and Shea Whigham is also wasted on a film that doesn’t know what to do with it. ‘City of Lies’ Review: Could Johnny Depp Have the Answer to the Notorious B.I.G.’s Murder? Brad Furman’s long-delayed look at the case around the murder of rapper The Notorious B.I.G. Movie: City of Lies (2021) info with movie soundtracks, credited songs, film score albums, reviews, news, and more. It has shades of JFK movie, but couldn't achieve that greatness. Films. “City of Lies” is in theaters now. Reviews City of Lies Brian Tallerico March 19, 2021. 2021; R; 110 min. Johnny Depp and Forest Whitaker head up this artless procedural about the murders of two rap artists. This is a gripping crime thriller about corruption in LAPD. Whitaker really falters most of all because of the slack direction, looking almost uncertain of what he should be playing at times. You know you’re in trouble when Voletta Wallace can’t really convincingly play herself. This movie should have been released, it's a shame that it got stuck due to controversy. CITY OF LIES is currently ... [Nightmarish Detour Review] CITY OF LIES - March 25, 2021 [Movie Review] PARANORMAL PRISON - February 19, 2021 [Article] Halloween Gift Guide - October 26, 2020; Share this: Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Like this: Like Loading... Biggie Smalls Brad Furman CITY OF LIES Forest Whitaker … ‘City of Lies’: Johnny Depp the real deal as a cop obsessed with justice for Tupac and Biggie Depp and Forest Whitaker go for authenticity in the gritty drama reminiscent of ’70s procedurals. A commentary on inequity related to murders of POC as a closing statistic implies? City of Lies is a 2018 American crime film directed by Brad Furman, with a screenplay by Christian Contreras. The killings, previously wrestled with on film and in print, have spawned a morass of theories that would give even the most experienced filmmaker pause. A tale of police corruption? ‘City of Lies’ Review: Dirty Cops and a Dangerous Conspiracy, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/18/movies/city-of-lies-review.html, Forest Whitaker and Johnny Depp in “City of Lies.”. Please consult the guidelines outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention before watching movies inside theaters. ‘City of Lies’ Review: Dirty Cops and a Dangerous Conspiracy Johnny Depp and Forest Whitaker head up this artless procedural about the murders of two rap artists. Los Angeles Police Department detective Russell Poole has spent years trying to solve his biggest case -- the murders of The Notorious B.I.G. City of Lies ist ein Kriminalfilm von Brad Furman, der am 19.März 2021 in ausgewählte US-Kinos kam. City of Lies is more James Ellroy than docudrama, resulting in a tired police thriller that hitched its wagon to an untenable star. L.A.P.D. At heart a movie about one man’s self-destructive obsession (Poole was forced to resign two weeks shy of his pension), “City of Lies” has an underlying, unexpected poignancy. It’s a BOATS (Based On A … “A murder like that only goes unsolved if the police don’t want to solve it.” This has long been the thrust of the conspiracies around the death of Christopher Wallace. shortly following the death of Tupac. Of course, it’s not her fault but that of the over-written dialogue given to her and the shapeless filmmaking. Naturally, the roadblocks he faces and the corruption he uncovers drives a good detective like Poole nearly insane, and Depp is strong in his best performance in years, finding the right world-weary tone without overplaying that aspect of his defeated veteran. Institutions / Legislation. City of Lies, the long-delayed Johnny Depp film about the murder of Notorious B.I.G., never quite cracks its own case. Reviewed online, Los Angeles, March 17, 2021. City of LiesRated R for offensive language and deadly weapons. His focus is Russell Poole (Johnny Depp, confusing somnolent with serious), a former Los Angeles police detective still tormented by his investigation into Wallace’s death decades earlier. Tweet. In der Filmbiografie, die auf einem Tatsachenroman von Randall Sullivan basiert, werden die Morde an Tupac Shakur und seinem Rap-Kollegen The Notorious B.I.G. “City of Lies” (REVIEW) Depp & Whitaker are a Compelling Duo in this Interesting Murder Mystery. When you purchase a ticket for an independently reviewed film through our site, we earn an affiliate commission. Aside from moving a bit slowly at times, City of Lies is a solid, believable detective story. We know this because his depressing apartment is liberally plastered in details of the case. detective, Russell Poole (Depp), is a beaten man, unable to solve his biggest case - the murders of music icons Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. Events / Promotion. Now on VOD, City of Lies is one of those movies where the final product might be less interesting than a documentary about its making. ‘City Of Lies’: Review By Tim Grierson, Senior US Critic 2021-03-15T10:55:00+00:00 Johnny Depp, Forest Whitaker star in a long-delayed drama which investigates the murder of the Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur. “City of Lies” just doesn’t add anything new to the conversation. Forest Whitaker did well too. Forest … As new movies open in theaters during the COVID-19 pandemic, IndieWire will continue to review them whenever possible. and Tupac Shakur. It’s a dull, overly familiar affair that really only reminds one that Depp should have segued nicely into old man roles if his personal life and on-set behavior hadn’t derailed his trajectory. Maybe there's a reason for that? The fact that this film sat on the shelf since it was filmed in late 2016 adds to its lack of urgency. Database of movie trailers, clips and other videos for City of Lies (2021). : On the Many Faces of Frankenstein, Shadow and Bone Sets Itself Apart from the YA Pack with Welcome Restraint, Geena Davis and Wendy Guerrero Preview the 2021 Bentonville Film Festival, Running August 3-8. In theaters today, March 19th. Languishing since 2018, Brad Furman’s “City of Lies” is the latest attempt to monetize the unsolved 1990s murders of the rap artists Christopher Wallace (a.k.a. He is also a writer for Vulture, The Playlist, The New York Times, and Rolling Stone, and the President of the Chicago Film Critics Association. R | 1h 52min | Biography, Crime, Drama | 21 December 2018 (Lithuania) 2:19 | Trailer. Drama / Thriller; Disgraced L.A.P.D. in den 1990er Jahren untersucht. It concludes with the title card, stating, “more than 50 percent of African-American murders remain unsolved.” There is an unmistakable immediacy here. was actively involved in Wallace’s killing and the ensuing cover-up — needs a confessor. Anthony Digioia / March 15, 2021. City of Lies. Summary: Based on the true story of one of the most notorious and unsolved cases in recent time, City of Lies is a provocative thriller revealing a never-before-seen look at the infamous murder of The Notorious B.I.G. Industry / Market. The truth is that the case around Christopher Wallace opens up numerous avenues regarding years of corruption in the Los Angeles Police Department. Distribution / Releases / Exhibitors. It becomes something of a friendship tale as Jackson draws closer to Poole, although that feels ultimately manipulative. A procedural? Spread the word and spread the love! The look is grimy and the atmosphere is grim; but what could have been a moody character study or a taut conspiracy thriller is instead a dreary procedural, a misbegotten mush of flashbacks, voice-overs and dead ends. The flashback structure derails "City of Lies," making the film seem curiously inert for a movie about murder and police corruption. It is based on the non-fiction book LAbyrinth by Randall Sullivan, about the investigations by the Los Angeles Police Department of the murders of rappers Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. Brian Tallerico is the Editor of RogerEbert.com, and also covers television, film, Blu-ray, and video games. Not Furman, though, who (with the screenwriter Christian Contreras) sets about dramatizing Randall Sullivan’s 2002 nonfiction book, the aptly named “LAbyrinth,” with rather more appetite than artistry. Running time: 1 hour 52 minutes. 4:33 PM PDT 3/18/2021 by John DeFore FACEBOOK; TWITTER; EMAIL ME; FilmNation Entertainment. Jack Jackson (Forest Whitaker) thinks he’s got Poole figured out early on, mocking the detective’s wall of pinned photos as an obvious sign of a conspiracy theory nut. Christian Contreras' script would have felt dated four years ago; it’s even worse now. Nomadland, I May Destroy You Take Top Honors at 2021 Film Independent Spirit Awards, It's Alive! wants to dig into one of the most famous celebrity murders of all time with a “Zodiac” degree of procedural obsession, but it succumbs to flat storytelling and direction that can’t figure out how to tell this tale in this runtime. That’s the sense through most of “City of Lies”: that there are pieces here that work but no one figured out at all how to assemble into an entertaining or enlightening piece of filmmaking. City of Lies (2021) Saban Films. Mortal Kombat (2021) Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Movie: Mugen Train (2021) Spiral (2021) Cruella (2021) A Quiet Place Part II (2021) Spirit Untamed (2021) In the Heights (2021) F9 Fast & Furious 9 (2021) Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway; Black Widow (2021) See All Coming Soon Festivals / Awards . Now streaming on: Powered by JustWatch. Furman’s direction is constantly letting down his actors. City of Lies is a English movie starring Johnny Depp, Forest Whitaker, and Rockmond Dunbar among others. 2 VIDEOS | 58 IMAGES. 'City of Lies': Film Review. A muckraking drama that deserves to be seen. Shorts. Is this a murder mystery? There’s a reason there have already been so many documentaries and even a TV series about B.I.G. Whitaker also seems to have a bit more pep in his step, playing this man of action, eager to set right again a few factual … ’ s long-delayed look at the case around the Murder of Notorious B.I.G. ’ s direction constantly! 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