The word
"courage" comes to mind.
Courage may be the only word that can possibly
describe Harvey Keitel's performance as the "bad
lieutenant," a cop so burned out, strung out and
hopeless that to watch him come to life onscreen
is simultaneously frightening, pathetic, sad,
frustrating and infuriating.
"Bad Lieutenant" is co-written and directed by
Abel Ferrara in such a manner that its edges
only add to its magnetism. In the film, Keitel
plays the nameless lieutenant, a cop whose
frazzled presence has destroyed his career, his
family, his children and, ultimately, his own
life as he has begun his slow fade into cocaine
and alcohol addiction. When a nun is raped,
Keitel's character meets her in the hospital and
despite her knowing who raped her she refuses to
press charges. She has forgiven them, a level of
redemption and absolution for which the
"lieutenant" has no frame of reference.
Keitel's performance is courageous, almost
psychotic, because it is deeply and profoundly
authentic. There are films that are painful to
watch because they are simply too real. "Bad
Lieutenant" is too real.
The rape scene in "Bad Lieutenant", while not as
drawn out or histrionic as that in "The
Accused," is, nonetheless, one of the painful,
dramatic rape scenes captured on film. Likewise,
Keitel's own scenes are almost nauseating in the
way Keitel portrays the lieutenant as both
frightening and frightened, powerful and
powerless in his life.
Keitel captured the Independent Spirit Award for
Best Male Lead for his performance here, and the
film and Ferrara also received nominations.
While there are supporting performances, this
clearly is a one man tour-de-force performance
for Keitel. An interesting sidenote is that
Keitel's real life daughter, Stella, portrays
his daughter here. One has to wonder how it
played on her psyche to see the deterioration of
this onscreen father figure.
Gritty, unique, authentic and achingly painful
are all words that sum up "Bad Lieutenant," a
film from Abel Ferrara that may, in fact,
feature the best performance in a career of
awesome performances from Harvel Keitel.
I believe it is my dark side
that admired this film...yep, it's true. I'm a
minister who actually acknowledges the shadows
within. This film explores those shadows with an
intense, graphic approach that is seldom seen in
modern cinema. Harvey Keitel does an admirable
job playing the Lieutenant. Keitel offers a
gripping performance here that brings forth
fear, humor, sympathy and repulsion. This film
is definitely not for everyone...it is raw,
graphic and was originally rated NC-17 largely
due to its intense, graphic language and a scene
depicting the rape of a nun. The film approaches
the topics of temptation and guilt and their
impact on our spiritual judgement, however,
doesn't always explore these areas fully enough.
The film is directed by Abel Ferrara, and he
also co-writes the film with Zoe Lund. An
interesting side note is that Stella Keitel,
daughter of Keitel and Lorraine Bracco, has a
supporting role here as Keitel's daughter.
Keitel picked up an Independent Spirit Award for
his performance in this film. This is not an
easy film to watch, however, I admired its
willingness to approach challenging spiritual
topics and explore them in the most graphic of
ways.
©
Written by Richard Propes
TC Candler's Comment
I watched
this film while I was going through my obsession
with Harvey Keitel's coolness back in the early
90's. All I really remember is that he is
a mentally disturbed cop who jerks off after
pulling over two girls for speeding. The
rest of the film has receded to the depths of my
brain for eternity. Others have really
praised this film, so maybe I will try it again
someday.
Jacob
Hall's Comment
N/A
