Ayers makes the trip worthwhile largely through his excellent eye for asphalt level L.A. and his careful attention to Ludlow's moral dilemma.
Comment
04/16/08
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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
At the end of the day, it's impossible to escape the feeling that we've seen this story told before.
04/16/08
I love James Ellroy--his L.A. Confidential is a work of real genius--but I wonder if he's not something of a one-trick pony. And I wonder if that pony isn't the proverbial dead horse
04/16/08
Ayers' second straight overwrought and unfulfilling tale concerning a loco white boy knee-deep in the City of Angels' criminal scene.
04/16/08
What makes this movie work is Keanu Reeves' performance. For years, this actor's naysayers have complained that he shows no emotion and is one-note. They can't see the bigger picture.
04/16/08
It's all very loud and very bloody -- and somehow agreeably dumb without ever being actually good.
04/16/08
When the bar has been set as high as it has in recent years by the likes of The Wire and the aforementioned Training Day, wasting money and studio resources on a clichéd rehash like this is puzzling, to say the least.
04/15/08
A convoluted tale of corruption within the ranks of the police
04/14/08
Reeves gives us very little to work with as a hero to cheer on or to give much of a damn about.
04/14/08
"Street Kings" is 107 minutes long and most casual viewers will know the bad guy's identity 100 minutes before Reeves does.
04/14/08
It’s really kind of a dirty scummy piece of work.
04/14/08
A recurring story pushed to the hilt, 'Street Kings' has a fiercely hyperbolic integrity.
04/14/08
'Street Kings' is a gritty popcorn movie for adults.
04/14/08
[R]elentlessly grim, relentlessly brutal, relentlessly cynical... [W]orks if you buy Reeves... as an unvarnishing mirror of exhausted but still thrashing 40ish Generation Xers...
04/13/08
The cast is filled with some very talented actors, but none of them really shines out in a film that ultimately feels like a thousand other police thrillers.
04/13/08
This ambitious rookie/jaded veteran template has become the new Hamlet. There's a conveyor belt of actors waiting to fill the roles. But as the lovable stoner comes back into fashion, I think Keanu Reeves should return to his roots.
04/13/08
There ought to be a testosterone warning posted at the box-office because overdosing is a distinct possibility, and to call Reeves'a acting wooden is an insult to Pinnochio.
04/13/08
Feels like stuff left over from a random episode of CSI: Dirty Cop Division.
04/12/08
I'm a sucker for good shoot 'em up action in a flick but I am also a stickler for a good story. I got the former but not the latter.
04/12/08
It's never a good sign when a movie makes you laugh out loud at dialogue intended to be taken seriously.
04/12/08
Latest 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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