Everything here is predictable, from the tired plot whose revelations are deeply unsurprising to the gritty dialogue and casual everyday violence of the cops involved.
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10/18/08
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Street Kings (2008)
37
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:147
Fresh:54
Rotten:93
Average Rating:5.1/10
Consensus: Street Kings contains formulaic violence but no shred of intelligence.
Rated: 15 [See Full Rating]
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:18-04-2008
Synopsis: In STREET KINGS, a police thriller directed by David Ayer, Keanu Reeves plays Tom Ludlow, a veteran LAPD Vice Detective. Ludlow sets out on a quest to discover the killers of his former partner,... [More]
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Hugh Laurie, Chris Evans, Forest Whitaker
Director: David Ayer
Reviews for Street Kings
A general emptiness nags as the story progresses, undermining the solid performances and weaving in a seriously ugly message.
04/20/08
There's plenty of empty bravura, and Reeves is fundamentally blank and uninteresting.
04/18/08
Top CriticDepressing and sickeningly violent.
04/18/08
Top CriticA by-the-numbers, cynical, bad cop-worse cops drama, made even less appealing by Reeves's mannequin-like presence.
04/18/08
Top Critic"Are there any square cops out there?" says a supporting character in David Ayer's actioner. The answer, of course, is no - and this violent yarn is all the better for it. Next time out, though, he should probably assign himself a less familiar beat.
04/18/08
Last-minute revelations emerge screaming from around the corner like squad cars you heard coming half-an-hour ago, and it all ends with a dull thud instead of a crash wallop. Long after you've stopped caring, it's finally over and out.
04/18/08
Top CriticYou can almost see the writers (Ellroy, Kurt Wimmer – creator of sci-fi mish-mash Ultraviolet – and first-timer Jamie Moss) charging at one another with false antlers in a challenge to come up with the toughest soundbite.
04/18/08
What could have been endearingly daft remains merely forgettable.
04/18/08
Top CriticAnother mean, violent and decently acted slab of Ellroy-flavoured criminality, with an impressively battered Keanu Reeves, but Ayers is no Curtis Hanson.
04/18/08
Top CriticWatchable thriller with a surprisingly good performance from Keanu, although the plot isn't nearly as clever as it thinks it is.
04/17/08
There's only the spectacle of crooked dunces slamming against each other
08/27/09
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04/23/09
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02/27/09
A lot of reviewers seem to have disliked Street Kings because of its negative view of the LA police, and perhaps the country at large. That is not a problem for me.
02/02/09
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10/18/08
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10/18/08
There is certainly something compelling in the film's ideas, but the way they're executed suggest that any true questions about morality and the law are just grist for the action mill.
10/18/08
A solid contemporary crime drama.
10/18/08
Keanu Reeves' bad-boy cop Tom Ludlow may not play by the rules, but the film sure does.
10/18/08
Top CriticLatest News for Street Kings
August 16, 2008:
Another wooden performance from Keanu Reeves in high-impact splatter flick. 
More...
August 08, 2008:
While military man turned director Ayer implicates our culture steeped in violence and the damaging effects of trained killing, whether by police or in war, he's assembled such a deplorable LAPD rogues gallery, it's hard to tell which one is the worst.
More...
April 23, 2008:
UK Box Office Breakdown: Craig's Fool Has Disasterous Opening
Daniel Craig's new film - Flashbacks of a Fool - suffers a disastrous opening weekend, coming in at only 11th in the charts. Fool's Gold and Happy Go Lucky are the big successes More...
April 17, 2008:
Box Office Guru Preview: Chan & Li Face Off Against Sarah Marshall
After four straight weeks of the box office falling significantly behind last year's pace, the marketplace is finally set to post a win thanks to a trio of new releases... More...
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