INFO: End of Watch is a gritty buddy cop movie set in Los Angeless.
Rated R, 109 min. Directed by David Ayer. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Peña, Anna Kendrick, Cody Horn, America Ferrera, Frank Grillo, David Harbour.
THE GOOD:
1. What makes this movie a winner for me is the great chemistry of the two main characters
Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña. Zavala (Peña) and his wife are having their first child. Taylor (Gyllenhaal) is a high-strung Marine fresh from a tour of duty in Afghanistan, who is single but seeking a relationship. Their dialogue is quirky, youthfully innocent and believable. Their characters are well developed and interesting.
2. The film’s voice-over prologue read by Jake Gyllenhaal really sets up the movie. It's poetic. At first I thought it was meant to be sarcastic. But realized that it wasn't, it was meant as heartfelt. It's almost poetic.
3. Good Plot, The basic plot revolves around two beat cops, who while working, respond to the variety of cop-situations that come there way. Then there is the back story of their personal lives, as they play out. It's a good mix of tension and light humor.
4. The Films unusual perspective. In the beginning of the movie we learn that Taylor (Gyllenhaal) is taking classes towards a law degree (this is mentioned once and never mentioned or referred to again). He needed an elective course and he chose film-making. So he has decided to film his daily life with a video camera and additional cameras that he and his partner wear clipped on to their uniforms. And, it just happens, that a group of hyper-violent street gang-bangers whom they encounter also are engaged in filming (self documenting) their antics. So throughout the film, we, the viewer see the street level perspective of the police, and at times the villi ans. Not all the time- the director weaves these perspective in and out. I personally found it effective, I thought it added intensity.
THE BAD:
1. Some do not like the filming method. Almost all the critics that found fault with this film were critical of the unusual switching between conventional widescreen establishing shots and the handheld camerawork. Some have pointed out that at times when we are watching what would be handheld camera work, that it is questionable who would be the one filming those shots - and at time who if anyone could actually be the filming those shots.
2. The big picture via the filming method. Some critics found it hard to digest that this film could be made from `clips' from various participants cameras. This point was made by the (usually grumpy) reviewer Philip French in The Observer: "The film's weakness lies in its novel (but hardly truly new) visual style: most of the material is found footage supposedly shot by Taylor and Zavala (to make their own private documentary), fellow cops and various criminals. This is initially intriguing, then irritating, and finally both confusing and deeply annoying."
3. As I mentioned in the positive attributes of this movie that the poetic prologue really set up the movie - some critics though have found that the movie lionizes the police to an annoyingly saccharine level, to the point that: "that you can almost believe End Of Watch has been bankrolled by the LAPD itself."
VERDICT:
A decent buddy cop film.
Watch End of Watch
on Amazon Streaming service now. Click HERE
Extra Notes:
What else has the writer/director David Ayer written?
In 2000 he wrote the screenplay for the film- U-571
About a U.S. Navy Captain and his crew are just beginning to enjoy 48 hours of leave when they receive word to immediately return to duty.Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Bill Paxton.
In 2001 he wrote the screenplay for the film The Fast and the Furious- the first in the franchise-with intense full-throttle action, awesome high-speed stunts, and full-on pedal to the metal intensity.Starring: the late Paul Walker, Vin Diesel.
Also in 2001 he wrote Training Day
about a mad dog narco cop who blurs the line between cop and criminal as he mentors an idealistic rookie partner during the rookie's training day. Starring: Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke.
In 2002 he wrote the screenplay for the film Dark Blue, about an LAPD detective named Perry who tutors his rookie partner in the realities of police intimidation and corruption as they investigate a high-profile homicide case. But as the body count rises and the evidence just doesn't add up, Assistant Chief threatens to end Perry's brand of "justice" if Perry's own demons don't destroy him first. Starring Kurt Russell and Scott Speedman.
In 2003 he wrote the screenplay for the film S.W.A.T. (2003),where uperstars Samuel L. Jackson and Colin Farrell team up with a dazzling cast to form a crack S.W.A.T. team aiming to take down crime in this pulse-pounding, high-octane, action/adventure.
In 2005 he wrote and directed Harsh Times, a tough-minded drama about two friends in South Central Los Angeles and the violence that comes between them. Starring: Christian Bale and Freddy Rodríguez.In 2012 he wrote and directed the movie reviewed here.
Then in 2014 he co-wrote and directed Sabotage '14,about members of an elite DEA task force find themselves being taken down one by one after they rob a drug cartel safe house. Staring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sam Worthington, Terrence Howard.
In 2014, he also wrote and directed the much praised film Fury, about a battle-hardened army sergeant named Wardaddy (Brad Pitt) commands a Sherman tank and her five-man crew on a deadly mission behind enemy lines. Starring: Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeoufExtra-
Jake Gyllenhaal grew up with a talented older sister, Maggie, and they followed their parents into the film industry – both featuring in 2001's Donnie Darko, the oddball time-travel movie and teenagers' favorite about A troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes, after narrowly escaping a bizarre accident.
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