BAD LIEUTENANT

Well this is a weird film to say the least, and a very difficult watch at times, charting the degrading behaviour of its protagonist, the eponymous Lieutenant, played by Harvey Keitel who gives an extraordinarily committed performance.

Apparently the director Abel Ferrara was on drugs whilst making this film, which seems appropriate given the nightmarish quality of some of the film, not to mention the amount of substance abuse committed by the Lieutenant as his life spirals out of control.

This might make a good entry in a triple bill about police corruption, along with 'Serpico' and 'Training Day'.  Certainly the Lieutenant exploits his badge to extract money, or drugs, or in one especially gross scene, sexual favours.

The film is not interested in explaining the Lieutenant's depravity but given the prominence of the Roman Catholic Church in the film, and the Lieutenant's hostility towards it, it is tempting to speculate that childhood abuse might be a partial explanation.

The film takes place over a few days during which the Lieutenant's increasingly unsuccessful bets on the World Series cause him to unravel, whilst in the background there is an horrific rape of a nun to be investigated.

I appreciated the uncompromising nature of the film, and the quality of the direction, but was left somewhat bemused as to what the point of it was ... and feeling I badly needed a shower. 

RATING: ✓ If You've Nothing Better To Do