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Gang Related

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Gang Related (1997)

October. 08,1997
|
6.4
|
R
| Action Thriller Crime
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Two corrupt cops have a successful, seemingly perfect money making scheme- they sell drugs that they seize from dealers, kill the dealers, and blame the crimes on street gangs. Their scheme is going along smoothly until they kill an undercover DEA agent posing as a dealer, and then try to cover-up their crime.

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Reviews

Claysaba
1997/10/08

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

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Baseshment
1997/10/09

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

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Dirtylogy
1997/10/10

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

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Sarita Rafferty
1997/10/11

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

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Mark Turner
1997/10/12

When released this film didn't garner much attention. It did decent business at the box office but nothing to brag about. With the passing of Tupac Shakur interest increased and fans clamored for any and all things Tupac. Now the film makes its way to blu-ray courtesy of Olive Video.Det. Frank Divinci and Det. Rodriguez (James Belushi and Tupac) are two corrupt cops more interested in making money than in doing their jobs. This isn't to say they can't get the job done that they're paid to do, they are good at finding bad guys. But becoming bad guys they find themselves in more trouble than expected.The two have stolen drugs, sold them, took the money from their mark and then killed him. Who would notice a dead drug dealer, especially if the detectives investigating the killing were these two cops? Problems arise when their latest mark turns out to be an undercover DEA agent.Given the job of finding the killer the pair come upon a homeless man (Dennis Quaid) and pin the rap on him. They even get Frank's girlfriend (Lela Rochon) to testify that she saw him do it. But their plan starts to unravel on several levels. Rochon begins to have second doubts about what she is doing. Worse yet it turns out that Quaid is actually a wealthy businessman who went missing some years ago. His lawyers turn up to rescue him and with that everything begins to fall apart. As the duo tries to figure out what to do clues to the real killer begin to mount.What makes the movie interesting is that it is told from their perspective, two corrupt cops as opposed to a mainstream hero trying to solve the mystery. Instead we have the reverse with two killers who have the means to cover their trail easily but who create so many mistakes that their tension over what to do next becomes ours as well.It's difficult to sympathize with these two main characters but before the movie ends you find yourself wondering if perhaps they will do the right thing. Therein lies much of the tension found in the film. That desire to make atonement for past indiscretions while at the same time knowing it will results in the loss of your freedom and perhaps the loss of your life makes you wonder if either is willing to go through with it. At the same time you wonder if they will indeed get away with it all.Tupac showed that he had a career ahead of him as an actor with a meaty role like this. He does a fantastic job and is quite believable in the part. It's a shame he never had the opportunity. I've said for years that Belushi was a better actor than people have given him credit for. He started off in the shadow of his older brother John and then was pushed into comedic roles only for a time. His handling of dramatic roles showed he could do both.While it's nice that Olive has released the film on blu-ray for fans of the film and of Tupac they once again show no effort to present anything but the movie itself. Extras are non-existent. As they move forward let's hope more of their releases see some effort on their part for things that some would enjoy. In the meantime at least the film is offered in a well done format with a nice print to work from. If you enjoy gritty cop dramas then you're bound to enjoy this one.

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D. B.
1997/10/13

I didn't have very high expectations for this one (partly because I am not terribly keen on James Belushi) but actually, the film was pretty good.The important thing is to understand the film as a thriller, rather than as a realistic or atmospheric piece. The subject matter and designated environment would point to noir, but the film fails to capture a sense of place or encapsulate an environment and way of life in a way that would justify such a designation. The environment is not actually unrealistic, but again it is not really captured either. Instead, the grit and indeed realism, tends to throw off the viewer, causing him to anticipate a different type of film. "Gang Related" is about plot, and there are a satisfactory number of twists and turns for the viewer. One could easily imagine a movie like this being adapted to the stage.The acting is generally of a very high standard with strong performances by Shakur and Belushi. The weakness of this film is rather in the fact that the film fails to create or capture a set of especially nuanced characters, and similarly fails to create a strong sense of place. A different director and different cinematography could have done this without substantial alteration. The dramatic twists and turns in the plot also could be considered a weakness, but this would be due to a misunderstanding of the type of story being told, rather than because that story is in itself a bad one.

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kriisalis
1997/10/14

Good movie....has a few twists and turns you don't expect. Both James Belushi & the late Tupac Shakur were well cast in the main roles - especially Belushi - this role being very different from his usual ones. The only other two cast members that have some grunt in the movie are Lela Rochon and Dennis Quaid. James Earl Jones has an appearance - if only small - but for me I will never be able to disassociate him from the voice we have all come to know as Darth Vader. Dennis Quaid however does some lime light stealing - but you'll just have to watch it to find out why! Overall good entertainment - may not be everyone's cup of tea - but had me engrossed. In a sense a typical good cops go wrong movie - but one that at least grabs you and sucks you in to watching it to find out what happens next. I gave it a 7/10.

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bob the moo
1997/10/15

Detectives Divinci and Rodriguez are crooked cops involved in dealing drugs and murdering the competition. When one of their victims turns out to be an undercover DEA agent, they are put on the case to find the murderer. With DEA agent Richard Simms desperate to get the killer, Divinci and Rodriguez realize that they have to frame someone else for the crime. Settling on homeless man 'Joe', they give him drink, get him to sign a statement and falsify the evidence to make a strong enough case to convict.I had half wanted to see this film for a few years simply because I am keen to take the few chances I have to try see Tupac acting – for me he was the saviour of Poetic Justice and he is much better than the vast majority of the hip hop 'actors' we have seen recently. The plot here is pretty much a standard thriller plot based around two dirty cops and, although it lacks real flair or imagination, it still manages to do its job and be an enjoyable and occasionally quite gritty little thriller. It could have done with a greater sense of tension though, for the majority of the time it merely unfolds as opposed to being fast paced or very exciting but it is still an enjoyable enough little film even if it pretty much goes where you expect it to.The cast is a big factor in making this film more interesting and making it rise above the other genre films that it will be competing with on the bottom shelf. Belushi has been in more than his fair share of sh*t video thrillers but here he is actually quite good and seems comfortable with material that, although not great, is certainly nowhere near the low level that he is getting used to. In his last film, Tupac is great and he should be a role model for all hip hop stars who want to act – even just in the choice of role he gives a great example – can you imagine many other rappers playing a corrupt cop with as little glamour as Tupac had? Snoop is a fine example, his last few roles have been versions of the caricature he plays in his music and many other rappers do the same – trading on their image rather than acting. Tupac is far from his gangsta image and he delivers a very down to earth performance – as with several other of his films he made this better by his presence. The gorgeous Lela Rochon is given an eye candy role at the start but she is able enough to make a good performance out of it (as well as having a body and looks to die for!). The smaller roles add the feeling of cast depth even if some of them add little else. Quaid for example has so little to do you wonder why he bothered – he feels like he should be a bigger part of the film but he isn't. For the opposite reason Jones, Cole and Paymer are all quite good because they are minor roles and they just feel like quality padding.Overall this is not a particularly earth shattering thriller but it does its job well enough and I found it pretty enjoyable. A well-known cast certainly helps to make the material rise slightly above the rest of its genre but it is a great performance by Tupac in a different role that made it for me; if only other rappers were less afraid of their image when making role choices then we may not be experiencing a wave of awful blaxploitation films all over again.

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