Dark Blue

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Poster for

Dark Blue

R

2003

1h 53m

Crime

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

Action

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

59%

Tomatometer

129 Reviews

52%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Set in the Los Angeles Police Department in 1992, "Dark Blue" is a thriller that takes place just days before the acquittal of four white officers in the beating of black motorist Rodney King and the subsequent L.A. riots. In this racially charged climate, the LAPD's elite Special Investigations Squad is assigned a quadruple homicide. As they work the case, detective Eldon (Kurt Russell), tutors SIS rookie Bobby (Scott Speedman) in the realities of police intimidation and corruption.

Critics Consensus

Kurt Russell gives a good performance. Too bad there's nothing here that you haven't seen before.

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

12/22/2010

3/5

Violent police detective teaches his partner.

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Sara Michelle Fetters

MovieFreak.com

06/19/2003

2.5/4

As Perry literally descends into hell during the L.A. riots, the film takes on an eerie melancholia powered by Russell's impassioned lead.

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Richard Roeper

Ebert & Roeper

02/24/2003

Well worth recommending.

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Felicia Feaster

Creative Loafing

01/30/2020

Dark Blue is a bitter, often stunning sewer elegy for the little-man-as-monster, the nobody who thinks he's somebody but who is just a stooge trapped within a corrupt system.

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Debbie Lynn Elias

Behind The Lens

11/07/2019

With Oscar season 2003 barely underway, our attention is already shifting to Oscar 2004, and in particularly, to Kurt Russell, who without a doubt, should be among next year's list of Best Actor contenders given his performance in Dark Blue.

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James Evans

Starburst

01/29/2019

5/10

It's not totally without merit (Kurt, mostly) but there's little nuance or replay-ability here.

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Marc S.

@MSteele67 Feb 22

Decent movie, with an excellent performance by Russell. However, the plot was formulaic & there was little character development. Not a bad movie, but for one that utilizes such an explosive & divisive moment in LA history as a background it was disappointing.

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M B

@Timbero Dec 11

I liked this, Kurt Russell was excellent and the rest of the cast. Builds up nicely into an involving movie.

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Jack F

@MovieFan111 Nov 20

The cover is misleading. I thought it was gonna be a whole lot more entertaining. But since Kurt Russell is in it, I happily watched it.

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Daniel V

@RT12337997 04/07/2024

I lived this. The Rodney King beating and the riots because of the LAPD officers were found innocent was current news for a 14-year-old me. Now, I'm not saying I was living it in the sense that I was in the middle of the riots, but I definitely watched it on the news while it was happening. It was a strange time. I fully support the police, I know several officers as well as sheriff's deputies. Some are very close to me. But I also believe this was police brutality. 99.9% of police are good people. But there is that .1% that aren't. And they need to not be cops. But I digress. As far as a police drama featuring corruption amongst their ranks, Dark Blue is cookie cutter. That's something I don't mind, especially since I like these types of cookies. However, what makes me rate this flick the way I did is because of my familiarity of the real life events that are its setting, and Kurt Russell. I love Kurt Russell and this is a fantastic performance by him. Vintage Russell. He's not a bad guy but he does bad things. It's a redemption story. And Kurt has my support if redemption is what his character is looking for.

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jwcdood

@jwcdood 11/28/2023

DARK BLUE has a good cast and is a good story, but poorly developed and poorly told. C'est la vie...

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Jelisije J

@jjosifovic 04/06/2023

An enjoyable corrupt cop movie that takes place near the time of the riots of 92 for Rodney King.

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Ron Shelton

Director

Kurt Russell

Eldon Perry

Brendan Gleeson

Jack Van Meter

Scott Speedman

Bobby Keough

Michael Michele

Beth Williamson

Lolita Davidovich

Sally Perry

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Synopsis

Set in the Los Angeles Police Department in 1992, "Dark Blue" is a thriller that takes place just days before the acquittal of four white officers in the beating of black motorist Rodney King and the subsequent L.A. riots. In this racially charged climate, the LAPD's elite Special Investigations Squad is assigned a quadruple homicide. As they work the case, detective Eldon (Kurt Russell), tutors SIS rookie Bobby (Scott Speedman) in the realities of police intimidation and corruption.

Director: Ron Shelton
Producer: Caldecot Chubb, David Blocker, James Jacks, Sean Daniel
Screenwriter: David Ayer, James Ellroy
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co: Cosmic Pictures, InterMedia Film Equities Ltd., Alphaville Films
Rating: R
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller, Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 21, 2003, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 30, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $9.1M
Runtime: 1h 53m
Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Surround, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)