Critique: Film> Reviews.

Love him or hate him, Sylvester Stallone did more than hold his own against an all-star cast back in 1997 for Cop Land. Far from his typical "showiest" performances (per se Rambo) he put on 40 pounds to play sheriff Freddy Heflin in a more emotionally-driven role; though, ironically, in what was easily his most inspiring performance since Rocky, the film's domestic success hurt his career, and he struggled to find work for years afterwards due to many critics believing he had swapped action for the more emotionally fulfilling dramas.

The premise of Cop Land is pretty simple: the nice guy sheriff of a small town has dreams of getting onto the big city force, but can't due to his partial deafness. Meanwhile, a bunch of NYPD cops are involved in corrupt dealings with the mob, ran by Ray Donlan (Harvey Keitel), which helps fund their homes and feed their families. Everyone in the town knows what's going on, but keep their eyes closed and mouths shut in order to live peaceful lives; that is until the sheriff decides to stand up for what's right and take life by the throat.

Cop Land has the cast of a Martin Scorsese film, and is therefore all about the characters. Freddy Heflin is a character we can easily sympathise with: he has great heart, though is stricken by the love he has for Liz (Annabella Sciorra- (a young woman he saved from a car accident when he was younger, in sacrifice of his own hearing, and she then went on to marry one of his "less-likable" colleagues)). When she asks why Freddy never got married he replies "Because all the best girls were taken." It really is a touching line. Emotionally captivating also are the feelings shown on Stallone's face at this point. Deep down the character knows that he is worth so much more than the cosy little life as the sheriff he has resigned himself to, but his spirit has become weakened, and he fears standing up for what he truly believes in. It's a truly convincing performance from Stallone- there are shades of De Niro in Raging Bull- not only with the weight factor, but in the feeling of despair and resignation. In fact, De Niro's character is vastly underwritten here in comparison (probably to make way for Sly), and I would have ideally like to have seen more of him; on the contrary though, he is effective in inspiring the slow-wittedness of Freddy Heflin, which eventually leads to the film's explosive conclusion, which can only be a positive thing.

Ain't he just adorable?

Pacing wise, the film is pretty much spot on. I haven't seen the Director's Cut as yet, which boasts the original running time of 112 mins, but all in all this is a low key affair that dares to build slowly. This could easily have been a mesh of big egos clashing for the spot light, but instead there is a gritty, down-to-earth- feel of many of the police movies of the 70s and 80s, which focuses upon the fine performances of its A-list heavies; with the "foolishly unhandsome" of them all coming out on top. Good on you Sly.

(C) Andy Carrington, 2008.