‘Being right is not a bullet-proof vest, Freddy!‘
I first saw Cop Land as a teenager and I absolutely adored it. The only reason that I haven’t returned to it since is that I was worried that the reality of the film wouldn’t live up to my memory of it. I needn’t have worried. Watching this film again made me long for a time when movies like this would still get made. Big budget. All-star ensemble cast. R rating. A film for grown-ups. No comic relief. I loved watching this movie again…
Freddy Heflin (Sylvester Stallone) is the sheriff of a gated New Jersey community for cops. Just that one-line synopsis is killer. Over time, Heflin realises that he is harbouring a town full of crooked cops led by Ray Donlan (Harvey Keitel). The incredible supporting cast is made up of Ray Liotta, Robert De Niro, Michael Rapaport, Robert Patrick, Annabella Sciorra and Janeane Garofalo. Wow.
Writer-director James Mangold has been at the helm of a number of films that I admire. Identity, Walk the Line, 3:10 to Yuma, Logan, Ford vs. Ferrari etc but there is a strong argument that Cop Land is actually his finest work. Stallone particularly thrives in a downbeat performance that is as close to his star-making turn in the first Rocky movie as anything he has done since. Elsewhere, De Niro is excellent in a rare supporting role, particularly in the scene in which he struggles to eat a messy sandwich whilst simultaneously crushing Stallone’s dream of ever being a real cop. Keitel is terrifying and avuncular all at once. Liotta coke-addled and manic. Rapaport plays that one character that he played in a bunch of ’90s cop films. It’s all great stuff. Seriously though, am I going crazy? What would be the equivalent of a movie like this today? I suppose you would have to look to the small screen for a story such as this in 2023. And boy is that sad.
Cop Land is a well-acted, well-directed home run of a movie. If you haven’t seen it already, seek it out. You won’t be disappointed.