Kevin Spacey plays a cop who is the consultant on a tv show and loves the attention of being in spotlight. Danny Devito plays a tabloid reporter who writes on "on hush hush, qt and off the record". He and Spacey's character have a relationship where he does the arrest and Devito gets a story. Guy Pierce is a the young hero cop that no one likes because of his straight and narrow attitude. Russell Crowe is tough, rough and tumble guy who defends women and strong willed. James Cromwell plays the chief of Police and finally (but not least) Kim Bassinger plays the vixen though which many of the this twists go through.
The plot is very intricate. After a longish introduction we get to know these men and how they work. When there is a murder in a local coffee shop that involves a fellow cop who is not very liked by his co-workers and an investigation insues, we find out lots about how they deal with stress.Mix in with this is mob influence popping into LA at the time and ehtics of law enforcement. If this sounds like a heavy plot it is. But with good dialogue and humor in the spots it all makes sense.
All of cast here have big shoes to fill. This movie is well written and each part is important to plot. Spacey is great as the celebrity cop and bring his own style (just like he did to Usual Suspects). Devito's character seemingly written for humor has depth in his way to link between all characters. Bassinger is stunning though a touch unwritten for her part. James Cromwell is also a bit cardboard and his true "character" isn't known until later in the film. Guy Pierce who was really good in "Priscilla Queen of the Desert" continues as the hero cop in this film. His character grows well as this movie goes on which is different. Curtis Hanson's direction is very strong and uncluttered. One of the things I didn't like was that it was slow in some parts.
In attendence was the whole cast including Spacey, Devito, Russell Crowe, Kim Bassinger and Curtis Hanson. All were very friendly outside the gala screening and answered questions. I still can't believe how pretty Bassinger is (especially in the revealing dress she wore), how short Devito is and how good Spacey looks in person. I got to this gala 1 hour before it started and got a seat in the second balcony directly across from the screen which was huge and the sound system was great.
