Plot: What’s it about?
I have always been a fan of the late 80’s and early 90’s cop thrillers with the noirish feel to them. A lot from this era, even the erotic thrillers we used to see just did something for me. They were made in such a way that the style and feel of them was unique to that era. I remember being somewhat indifferent to Internal Affairs after my initial viewing. By no means was it a bad film, but I suspect I was expecting more of an action style flick that what we got. With this new 4K set full of new and exciting features, I figured what better time than to revisit it and see how things are today.
We can see from the opening moments the kind of cop that Richard Gere plays in this film. His Dennis Peck takes corruption to a whole new level. There is a drug bust as the film begins which results in an unarmed man being killed by another police officer, Dorian Fletcher (Micheal Beach). Peck quickly comes to his defense in how he tries to frame the now deceased suspect. We’re then introduced to Raymond Avilla (Andy Garcia) who is joining IAD to investigate an unrelated matter involving a cop named Van Stretch (William Baldwin) who has more than a few marks on his record. It doesn’t take long for Avilla to turn his attention to Peck as their first encounter isn’t as smooth as it should be. We learn much of Avilla and his personal life as well as Peck’s with the latter able to run a lot of side hustles to supplement his income. I especially enjoyed the sequences with the Garcia character and his female partner, Amy Wallace played by Laurie Metcalf. What is interesting here is seeing how both of our lead male characters can seem so together one moment then become unhinged the next. Both Peck and Avilla have moments here where I wasn’t sure just what they were going to do next. It becomes a fascinating watch.
After I watched this film again, I realized that much of my review might be committed to a plot discussion as, admittedly there is a lot going on here. In can get a bit overwhelming at times but viewing the film and seeing it all unfold makes much more sense than reading the premise. It is amazing to me the level of tension just in a conversation between the Gere and Garcia characters than there is a standard thriller or horror film. I find this to be since we’re never quite sure what these two characters are going to do next. It should be noted that Internal Affairs is far more interested in the characters rather than actions sequences and shootouts. Oh, you will get plenty of action, but the characters and their personal and daily lives is what takes center stage. And I feel it’s all the better for it. I cared about the characters here and even wondered about the outcome. It has been some time since I last viewed the film, so I will admit that I forgot just how this all turned out. I will say that the ending still isn’t perfect. To give even further proof, this set features the much talked about alternate ending which is still somewhat flawed as well. Still, this is one that remains to be seen, especially if you’re a fan of the early 90’s cop thrillers such as this. Check it out.
Video: How’s it look?
Audio: How’s it sound?
Supplements: What are the extras?
- Audio Commentary – Film Critics Alain Silver and James Ursini sit down for a nice and detailed chat.
- The Clever and the Corrupt – A nice and lengthy chat with Director Mike Figgis who leaves no stone unturned. We learn about the rumored tensions between Garcia and Gere, with the former allegedly just staying in character. It’s a great watch.
- His Most Dangerous Weapon – Screenwriter Henry Bean gives another solid interview here, speaking of the origins of the script as well as other great tidbits.
- One Bad Cop: Interview with Co-Composer Anthony Marinelli – I typically don’t care for these segments as much, but there’s still enough good insight here for a viewing.
- Deleted/Extended Scenes and Alternate Ending – This is the meaty supplement that I was personally most looking forward to. The quality isn’t the best (though still watchable) but much are redundant. There are alternate versions of some scenes that I feel worked much better in the final film, so I am glad for the change. The alternate ending is featured here and separately. It is fun to see, but I prefer the final version, I think. What’s most interesting is that much of this footage was shown in the trailer, so it’s inclusion here is most welcome.
- Alternate Ending – It is simply presented on its own, and surprisingly looks a bit better here than when compiled with the deleted scenes.
- Theatrical trailers – This includes the film and a few others.
