Film Review – Rampart :: Filmoria Movie News

Rampart is the story of Dave Brown (Woody Harrelson), an LA cop who abides by his own rules and sees no reason why he shouldn’t. Though it has never been proven, Dave was nicknamed “Date Rape” Dave because people believe he killed a suspected rapist in a pre-meditated attack. It is not until he is caught on camera beating a man to within an inch of his life after a car accident that Dave has to fight to keep his job by any means necessary, even if it involves theft, assault or worse.

Surviving on an apparent diet of cigarettes and alcohol, Dave is not a bad guy in the traditional sense. He is not out to do evil, nasty things to people. He genuinely believes he knows best and he is only hurting bad people – which in his mind is entirely fair. He is doing his job, no more no less. It is this blind self-assurance that makes Dave all the more menacing. There is no reasoning with him, no explaining that you can’t go around beating up people you believe to be criminals. He just doesn’t grasp the “proper” way of doing things and blunders on regardless. Because of this almost cavalier attitude and the growing annoyance of those around him, it always seems inevitable that his past will eventually catch up with him and his stubbornness means that he is not about to bow out gracefully.

Keeping Dave as centred as he can ever hope to be is his highly fractured, highly dysfunctional family of females who live in the house next to his. Dave has two children by two different women and those women just happen to be sisters. The way he still tries to sleep with both women, subtly propositioning them one after the other whilst both his daughters are still in the room, is both repellent and oddly appealing. He has a blind confidence that reveals just why he has such a powerful effect on the women in his life. His relationship with his two daughters is even more compelling than his frequent liaisons in bars. His love for his family and constant battle to keep on the good side of his children offers some degree of reprieve to an otherwise nasty man but eldest daughter Helen (Brie Larson) sees right through him. She is at the rebellious adolescent teenage stage, expressing herself with controversial art and colourful hair. He doesn’t understand her or know how to talk to her – something that many fathers of teenage girls can no doubt relate to. But she isn’t just rebelling for rebelling’s sake. Helen hates her dad and is very protective of younger half-sister/cousin Josephine (Sophie Kargman) who still idolises him.

As the film progresses, his carefully controlled life starts to fall apart at the seams and it is this gradual progression into chaos and uncertainty that makes for such compelling viewing. The acting is flawless, especially by Harrelson who manages to give depth to an otherwise straightforward ‘bad guy’ character. The supporting cast, which includes Robin Wright, Sigourney Weaver, Cynthia Nixon, Anne Heche and Steve Buscemi, enhance the film in brilliantly subtle ways. There is no over-acting here. It is all spot-on.

The violence in Rampart is not nearly as explicit as I imagined with only a few moments of physical violence and many, slightly scarier moments of Dave taking his aggression out on inanimate objects – namely tables. There is also a fine line between sex and violence as Dave uses both of these as forms of release, commanding both with that same mixture of blind confidence and arrogance. The ad-lib style of dialogue adds a certain documentary feel to the film, with the family all talking over each other at mealtimes. This adds an element of realism to the film which, coupled with long close-up shots of Harrelson, make it often intrusive and uncomfortable.

Rampart is stunning to watch, with a clever, gritty script and with its flawless acting and intoxicating lead male, will appeal to many. However, it often makes for uncomfortable viewing and won’t be for everyone.

Rating: