Dirty: Cops Gone Bad

Corrupt cop movies have been a staple of Hollywood for a generation. The latest in the pantheon is director Chris Fisher's Dirty. It is the kind of film that is entertaining enough in the theater but upon reflection loses much of its punch and seems contrived.

The film is set up thru voiceovers by Armando Sancho (Clifton Collins Jr.). Armando is a former gang banger turned cop. He's still haunted by his former life in the barrio, and by a man that he and his partner killed. We soon meet Salim Adel (Cuba Gooding Jr.), Armando's partner and a real piece of work. 

Salim is nearly as crooked as the men they try and put behind bars. Basically he’s a gangster with a badge. Sancho at least has a conscious, though it’s displayed in some truly bizarre dream sequences in which he sees the corpse of the man they killed on accident.

We learn they are facing an Internal Affairs investigation on the slaying. The Chief promises to make sure they skate around any problems. Then Division Lieutenant (Cole Hauser) gives them some information on an illegal deal going down that they can get involved with. A common theme thru much of the picture is that the LAPD is just a legalized gang, just without the familial loyalty that real gangs have.

Sancho is hesitant about this new assignment. He’s at heat a decent guy, and seems fairly revolted by the fact that the “good guys” aren’t so good. Meanwhile, Adel intimidates citizens, bullies, drug pushers, and sexually molests a young girl. Sancho slowly but surely also loses his way and after the drug bust goes horribly wrong with Adel getting shot in the leg. As we come to find out the LAPD has tried to have the two partners killed for fear of what they will tell IA even Sancho has lost his faith in the department.