To Live and Die in L.A.

Two years before Lethal Weapon, this film introduced the "I'm too old for this shit" line. To Live and Die in L.A. is pretty much Heat meets Lethal Weapon, The Departed and an episode of Miami Vice.

Very much carried by the filmmaking. The cinematography and vibe are easily its greatest asset. The score is incredibly dated, but also the thing that gives the film its unique flavour. The set-up and characters are generic and lacking in interesting detail, but it does go to places you don’t expect as the film goes along. The acting and dialogue are suitably cheesy, which is exactly what the film’s going for. It could’ve gone a little more over the top perhaps, because I think this is not as memorable as say _Lethal Weapon_. The action, while very impressive when it’s on, feels like it’s directed with the same vision in mind as _The French Connection_, which doesn’t entirely fit with the tone of this movie. Moreover, some of the (sound) editing is not that well done, for a film with such a simple premise it can get quite messy at times. 6/10