When your (anti)hero is a corrupt LA cop quite willing to bend the rules of both the police force and societal values, it’s fair to say that you don’t have a film for everyone. When the guy’s name is Dale ‘Date-Rape’ Brown, and he’s in every scene in the damn movie, well that makes it even tougher.
Even though Rampart is set in the late 90s, Brown (Woody Harrelson) is already an old school throwback to the days when the law was the law, and when cameras and reporters weren’t on hand to record and broadcast every foible, wrinkle and minor case of unwarranted police brutality.
Even with the spectre of internal affairs and an intense focus on the police image and upholding moral values, Brown still does things his way. His scathing and blunt dialogue is especially lacking in pretence, as if he specialises in making small verbal incisions, then progressively dripping lemon juice into the wounds and watching them squirm. This is the case with the criminals, with his family (which seems to include many kids and multiple mistresses in the same home), with the peers that loathe him and the ones who don’t. Even the female lawyer that he bangs on the side.
But Brown is as smart as he is PC agnostic. When caught on camera while performing a routine beating and faxed with dismissal and public shame, Brown wont quit, won’t settle, won’t even admit to his guilt. And if he ever has a second’s doubt or personal guilt, he sure doesn’t show it. He argues that the whole thing is a set-up. Brown is definitely a scumbag, but whether he is a scapegoat remains to be seen.
As a movie Rampart is so-so. But Brown the character is fascinating. Totally self centred, devoid of a moral compass and fiendishly clever. Brown remains quick witted and mentally agile enough to keep escaping through increasingly smaller gaps but his options – and the gaps – arrive further and further apart.
Final Rating – 7 / 10. Think Bad Lieutenant without the flair, or Falling Down without the constant coincidences. Rampart is well acted and well made, but more a cinematic achievement than a provider of enjoyment.