Brooklyn's Finest - A Good Fast Paced Cop Drama About Morality & Ethics

Brooklyn's Finest is a gritty and brutal police drama from Antoine Fuqua, the director of such films as Shooter and Training Day. The film follows three cops as they are forced to confront their own moral dilemma and the deadly and often brutal consequences that follow.

Eddie Dugan (Richard Gere), a washed-up, drunk, and bitter Irish cop who is days away from retirement is forced by his boss (not sure of the rank) to actively train new recruits. He is disliked by those around him and he dislikes them right back. The only solace he finds is in that of a prostitute. She's nice enough, but I mean, she's a prostitute. Oh, he's also going through a divorce! Good thing I didn't forget that! His moral dilemma is whether he should muster courage and take action against blatant evil or whether he should just turn away and find his solace at the bottom of a bottle.

Clarence "Tango" Butler (Don Cheadle) is a undercover cop who must navigate the dangerous gangs of Brooklyn. He desperately seeks a promotion and a nice coozy office job so he can get his life and more importantly, his marriage, in order. His moral dilemma: His last assignment is to take down the very man who saved his life, ex-con Casanova Phillips (Wesley Snipes in a powerful return  to the screens before he's sent to prison I guess).

Lastly, there is Det. Sal Procida (Ethan Hawke) who plays a officer assigned with the more dangerous police jobs such as taking down drug houses and things like that. He is undergoing a severe crisis in his life as his wife is pregnant with a third child. Barely able to afford the two they have and with his wife having increasing health problems due to the mold in their small house, Sal has taken steps to buy a new house for the family. Apparently not watching the news for the past several years, he really doesn't have the money to afford the first payments and must do whatever he can to get those funds - including stealing drug money in very dangerous circumstances - that is his dilemma.

Overall, the movie is pretty good. It is a very gritty police drama and is depressing throughout. The acting is very good even if I'm not a Richard Gere fan (he cries in all his movies) . The plot is well constructed and never confuses or misses a beat. The beginning is somewhat slow and I found myself never really getting into it until about midway through, although by then I was on the edge of my seat - no kidding. Warning: This is a fairly violent movie.

I give it 4 out of 5 Roger Eberts

Music: Edwin McCain - I'll Be