Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans

Here's what Werner Herzog has to say about directing a remake of Abel Ferrara's "cult" flick Bad Lieutenant: I've never even seen the original film, so we know now the films have nothing to do with each other. (It was the film's producers who insisted on the title) It was a speculation to start a franchise. And from day one, I said this is a mistake, it will backfire, it is wrong. Got it. It's not a remake. Nicolas Cage is a terrific actor. He is fearless. Unfortunately, he never seems to know how to dose it in whatever roles he picks. Or actually, his performances are barely ever suitable to the characters he plays, making him look bad, uselessly quirky and annoying. With Bad Lieutenant he finds the shoe that fits. His paring with the German director is a match made in heaven. They both understand the material, which would have been bad in lesser hands. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans is like an over-the-top parody, and I can already hear some people asking what it is that critics like about this film. The tone is subtle, and it can easily be mistaken as a badly written screenplay, when in fact, it is a terrific film. Cage is the painkiller-addicted Lieutenant who has to solve a murder, while dealing with mobsters, drug dealers, his prostitute girlfriend, some gambling problem, etc... There is a lot going on. At one point I was afraid it would all fall apart, but instead, every subplot is imbricated and nothing is left unresolved in the end. But Bad Lieutenant isnt really about the plots - or the subplots - but rather about the madness, almost surrealistic, but it's not even close to be a character study. Werner Herzog said of his film it's the most hilarious one of his resume. I agree, but not hilarious in a laugh-out-loud way. Herzog doesnt take the script seriously and lets the story tell itself. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans has nothing to do with the Harvey Keitel flick of 1992. A lot of people will be turned off by its crudeness, or they simply wont get its tone. It's not for everyone, but it's a terrific film, and it features Nicolas Cage's best performance in years.