Friedkin i would say is a hyper stylized director who loved the french new wave. Both have major melville influences. I dont think friedkin is naturalistic personally. Sorcerer, french connection and exorscist all have the things youre mentioning.
Friedkin came from documentary film making, completely unschooled, on the job learning. i was recently rewatching 'Sorceror' and was struck by several sequences in it that were as documentary as any news footage of the past 50 years. The vibe is real.
It is an awesome flick. And William Petersen is in top form as well. I love seeing all the references to Michael Mann too. His "Manhunter" with William is top notch, and you can see his "Miami Vice" stylings all over it.
I met William Petersen in a restaurant not long after To Live & Die in LA debuted. He was very humble and appreciative of the recognition. Very happy to see that he ended up doing so well in Hollywood, especially w/ CSI. But, man, that movie is INTENSE!
Brilliant Friedkin! I love Peterson as the corrupt adrenaline junkie and Pankow as his straight-laced partner. DaFoe at his scariest. Young Turturro!Epic car chase concluding in the the LA aqueduct. And a killer soundtrack by Wang Chung. This soundtrack is one of my go tos for driving at night.
haven't seen the remaster you speak of. but I would offer my favorite scene: just after the craziest car chase ever, the two cops are trying to cool down. meanwhile some reggae dude sort of grooves on by carrying a portable stereo. and one cop suddenly screams "WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO!?!?!?"
Saw this in the theatres when it came out, and I felt like around the time antiheroes who saved the day were becoming a staple of entertainment. And the penultimate scene hit so damn hard I still feel it to this day.
Yes! Why is that so attractive?! Also, did you notice that his partner mimics the walk when marching up to his informant’s house at the end of the movie?
AFAIK first use of “I’m gettin’ to old for this shit”. Also feels very cocaine-fueled with all the hopping over stuff and fast talking going on toward the end.
Gosh I remember seeing that movie and thinking how bad it was but it's for sure a 80's time capsule. GTA Vice City stole some of its storyline... Petersen's performance......
Gorgeous cinematography, great storyline, some seriously crazy-ass stunts (bungee jump off the bridge, a great car chase) killer soundtrack, and yes, William Petersen's almost full frontal scene for the win.
Astonishing movie. Turns up to the party with a massive bag of coke but then snorts it all and takes a massive dump in the jacuzzi. The main character has main character syndrome.
As you could probably guess from how they signed it, this was signed on the tour for their next album (with the song everybody knows). The last time I checked, the show that the signing preceded is strangely missing from their tour history on their official site.
I saw a screening of it at UCLA many years ago and Friedkin was there for a Q&A after. Someone asked: "Why L.A.?" Friedkin replied (paraphrasing heavily) "L.A. is a perfect setting for a movie about counterfeiters, every waiter is an actor, every gas station attendant a screenwriter".
Two LA films that really anticipated things:
1. Grand Canyon (1991) -- prior to theA Riots. But spot on. Everything then was palpable. The years prior to the riots were filled with the themes of this film.
2. The End of Violence (1997) -- captures where we went and are today. China included.
Y'remember how in the 80's we'd record movies off HBO-weekends and it became a staple of your video library?
I hit the jackpot on his one af 16... watched it DOZENS of times
The Wang Chung soundtrack is so great too! In high school, I had a cassette rip with TO LIVE AND DIE IN LA on one side, and Licensed to Ill on the other. I wore that shit out.
The Robby Müller cinematography makes this movie absolutely gorgeous to look at. It's Paris Texas with guns, car chases, and the nastiest collection of characters you'll ever meet.
“ You want bread go fuck a baker.” That’s some vintage Tuturo. Very early DaFoe. One of the best 3rd acts in movie history imho. Just an absolute banger and a great soundtrack
I met Earnest Hart Jr once at work. Sold him a turkey for thanksgiving. Great dude. Super down to earth, had some great stories from filming. Showed me all these pictures he had. 10/10, would sell birds to him again.
My wife and I just watched this like a month ago. I was blown away. Not only does the movie still hold up, it almost feels like a rebuttal to the fascist cop movies of the 80s
A very good movie yes, not the French connection. the remaster quality great. Peterson did not make it because he’s a stiff IMO. Just like David Caruso. Became famous in NYPD blue but flopped in the movies. Ended up in CSI. Good TV actors. No Gene Hackman. Watch The Conversation
Saw it in the movies, great movie and soundtrack. The height of the 80’s. As a young man in his 20’s in NYC the west coast was just as cool and exciting as the east coast. Lots of controversy surrounding movie about counterfeiting, Friedkin wanted it to be as realistic as possible.
I see a lot of people praising the car chase but as I recall (it's been years since I've seen it) they reverse the traffic flow for it, and it always looked stupid to me for that. There's a whole section in the Wikipedia article about this that doesn't make it any clearer why they decided to do it.
That's interesting but not something I've ever noticed and realistically it's not something 99% of people watching this will ever notice. That's, acceptable for this kind of filmmaking where you are trying to do insane looking things on a not so insane budget.
My fun fact about it is that the Secret Service learned counterfeiting techniques they weren't aware of from the film, like Willem Defoe putting the bills in a dryer with poker chips. Friedkin knows some folks.
I never watched this until recently, because it seemed one of these “casually misogynistic asshole doesn’t play by the rules, but he GETS HIS MAN” cop movies, and little did I know I was being masterfully faked out. I love a super bleak noir and it did not disappoint
So glad to see him in something of a renaissance a few yrs before Quantum Leap. Married to the Mob was right abt then, too; Alec Baldwin had a small part in that.
TBH we made out a bunch during the movie. He was a crap kisser. But I was quite interested at William Peterson’s full frontal and Willem Dafoe’s creepy face. I used to take myself out to see movies like 1984 and Fellini films by myself back then but I’d never take a date to them
Damnit just watched Manhunter last week, tonight I was in the mood for the Matrix because we’re glitching so bad right now. Now granny may have to stay up late and watch this.
It's been a long time since I watched it, I remember a great car chase i think. Such an overlooked movie, I remember when CSI was on and people asked me about this actor having not seen him in anything and I was like, watch To Live and Die in LA and Manhunter.
Comments
Wait until you hear what Friedkin did what that counterfeit money, irl.
GREAT!
Whiteploitation film
That is friedkin mentality at work.
Everything came together
Willem Dafoe
Great cast! If you like William Petersen, check out Gun Shy (Diane Lane!)
😘
Had some crappy lines/scenes though
Yes please.
The cast had many future stars.
Plus tthat soundtrack fucking rules.
Car chase still stands up.
Did u mean this
1. Grand Canyon (1991) -- prior to theA Riots. But spot on. Everything then was palpable. The years prior to the riots were filled with the themes of this film.
2. The End of Violence (1997) -- captures where we went and are today. China included.
I hit the jackpot on his one af 16... watched it DOZENS of times
https://letterboxd.com/max_read/film/to-live-and-die-in-la/
Also, that Wang Chung soundtrack? Straight 🔥.
"Why are you chasing me?!"
"Why are you running?"
"Because you're chasing me!"
“Why are you running?”
“Cause you’re chasing me.”
“Why are you chasing me?”
“”Cause you’re running…”
😎🤣🤣
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypadFnFEtZU
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_tq018xnM7w
We have all been there, done that.
100% not a date movie.
well a first date anyway.
Great review that absolutely nails the enduring qualities of this 80's gem.