L.A. Confidential (Two-Disc Special Edition)

One of my favorite films and it looks great in HD. All the features of the original DVD are included. The movie itself just gets better every time I see it and I catch details I missed on previous viewings. The way this film creates the atmosphere of the 1950s is amazing and what a terrific cast. It easily could have won the Best Picture Oscar. I highly recommend it.

If you are wondering whether it's worth the 18 bucks and change for the blu-ray, in my opinion you shouldn't wonder any longer. Pick this disc up. The movie, which is near-flawless in every way, just gets better in 1080p. You can really appreciate the passion that director Curtis Hanson brought to the film when you pick up the incredible detail in every filmed location. A great surprise was Jack Vincenne's (Kevin Spacey) monogrammed "JV" on his shirts --- never noticed that before when watching in standard def. It's these little details that really envelop the viewer in the world of corrupt, violent 1950s L.A.

The special features on the BD seem to be a port over from the special edition DVD put out a few years ago, but they're still great. This is obviously Curtis Hanson's pet project, and he poured a lot of effort into the home video release.

This is one of my favorite movies of all time. Seeing this on Blu-Ray is astonishing. The image quality is far beyond what I had expected, which makes this movie an even better, more intense experience. The codecs and conversion algorithms they used are better than for many movies filmed directly with hi-def cameras. There is no moire effect, no color banding, and colors out of true. It's like seeing it in the movie theatre again.

Really can't say anything more than what others have said; the ensemble cast is uniformly excellent. Kevin Spacey has his breakout performance in this movie, and James Cromwell creates a bad guy to end all bad guys. The triangle of Crowe, Pearce and Basinger is the core of the movie and all three of them bring the the goods. Another breakout performance by Crowe; this movie made him a star.

One of the most faithful book adaptations ever done in Hollywood. I wish Curtis Hanson would do one or two more of James Ellroy's books; Ellroy pretty much represents the peak of noir mystery writing, similar to Raymond Chandler in detective fiction.

Again, don't miss this hi-def version. 5 out of 5 in quality all the way around!

This is a great film.
IT SHOULD HAVE WON THE ACADEMY AWARD FOR BEST PICTURE OF 1997 INSTEAD OF THAT NUDIE BOAT MOVIE.

Although not my personal favorite film of 1997, that honor goes to "Air Force One".

I am glad they FINALLY came out with this 2 disc special edition. SHOULD have come out in 2007 for the 10th anniversary.

It was this film I learned about Russell Crowe. Became a fan at once. And, another SHOULD, he SHOULD have been nominated an Oscar as well.

The cast are perfect in their roles.

A flaw. Did NOT need the nudity in the film.

There are good extras in this special edition. They did a good job with this.

Now, the mistakes with the DVD packages.
Although it comes with a CD this does NOT make up for these mistakes to me
1. NO chapter list
2. No printed material on the film
3. Badly designed how they input the discs inside the package

Film noir continues to be one of the most difficult genres to make well particularly today (I'd note for purists that film noirs are largely in black & white a fixture of the genre). Film directors can't hide the flaws of a noir behind big explosions, car chases or visual effects. "L.A. COnfidential" probably isn't for everyone because it combines the film noir genre with a solid mystery and strong dramatic performances.

Set in Los Angeles during the early 1950's, "L.A. Confidential" opens with a bang quite literally--Three very different detectives the by-the-book golden boy Ed Exley (Guy Pearce), the hard nosed violent Bud White (Russell Crowe) and the celebrity obsessed Jack Vincennes (Kevin Spacey)try and unravel the conspiracy behind a seemingly random shotgun slaying at a popular diner and how it is tied into the murders of organized crime kingpin Mickey Cohen's gang. The three detectives make a reluctant team hoping to solve the crime and achieve their own personal agendas in the process. They also must find out how Lynn Bracken (Kim Bassinger) a hooker who looks like Veronica Lake and a cavalcade of other hookers made up to look like Hollywood stars figure into all of this.

Well directed by Curtis Hansen from a terrific script by Brian Helgeland and Hansen that manages to adapt James Ellroy's novel without betraying its story or atmosphere, "L.A. Confidental" was nominated for a bucket load of Oscars winning two for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress (Kim Bassinger). The entire cast is terrific from Crowe to Danny DeVito who plays Sid Huggins the editor of the scandal rag L.A. Confidential. Spacey plays oily Vincennes with confidence and style while Crowe embodies the brutal force of Bud White. Pearce who plays Exley the son of a highly regarded murdered police officer gives depth to a character that could easily have been cookie cutter.

The Blu-ray looks positively stunning particularly. How does this look in comparison to the 1998 original DVD release? There's greater detail and sharpnes. The original DVD was one of the best transfers of its era (and still holds up remarkably well). The new DVD also looks sharper but the Blu-ray manages to capture the golden cinematography Oscar nominated Dante Spinotti perfectly.

We get a great mix of previously released extras ported over from the first "Special Edition" when DVDs were still being released in snapcases to some stunning brand new ones as well. The best here is the audio compilation of comments by the director, cast and crew. Although it isn't as fascinating as a scene specific commentary track, it allows each important member of the creative team to give their thoughts on shooting the film, the characters and the story.

"Whatever You Desire" is a brand new 30 minute documentary on the making of the film. "Sunlight to Shadows" another new extra focuses on the cinematography. "The Cast" is pretty self explanatory focuses on the seven main characters and two relative "unknowns"-Pearce and Crowe. "From Book to Screen" gives us Hansen and Helgland discussing the difficulty of translating Ellroy's terrific novel to the screen without sacrificing too much of the story or characters. We also get two very neat extras--"L.A. Confidential" a 2003 pilot for a TV series that was to star Keifer Sutherland and a second disc that gives us a sampler of the soundtrack featuring the following songs: Johnny Mercer and the Pied Pipers -- "Ac-Cent-tchu-ate The Positive"
Chet Baker -- "Look for the Silver Lining"
Betty Hutton -- "Hit the Road to Dreamland"
Kay Starr -- "Wheel of Fortune"
Jackie Gleason -- "But Not For Me"
Dean Martin -- "Powder Your Face With Sunshine

The DVD set has three discs if you count the sampler while the Blu-ray has two. A terrific 10th Anniversary reissue I'm glad this reissue wasn't kept off the record, on the QT, and very hush-hush.