End of Watch – Review

End of Watch is the new film out directed by David Ayer.  Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Pena star as LAPD officers who work in South Central Los Angeles.  The film employs a handheld cinematic style which is actually embedded into the movie as if what we’re watching is what’s being recorded by Gyllenhaal and others as they walk around with video cameras.  The plot centers on the day to day activities of the officers as they continue to stumble upon increasingly serious and disturbing events.

Gyllenhaal and Pena both shine brilliantly.  They provide a level of humanism rarely seen and even though their lives are probably very different from most viewers they remain extremely relatable.  Their chemistry as partners is simply phenomenal.

Unfortunately, nothing else in the film lives up to their performances.  Everyone else in the movie is extremely one dimensional and devoid of any sort of genuine character.  Whether it’s the wife, girlfriend, fellow officers, or gang members, everyone else could have been lifted straight out of a bad cartoon.

As good as most of the film is, when it ends you can’t help but feel used.  It seems the entire agenda of the film is to invoke a strong emotional response by getting you attached to the main characters and then gunning them down. It is a cheap method of getting the audience emotionally invested in what’s happening.  Yes, the title of the film gives away the ending, but it’s just the way it all goes down which just seems so unnecessary.  It’s hard to appreciate a film when it’s climax is Mexican cartel members using AK-47’s to rip up a police officer who is on his knees with his back towards them.  It’s a shame because while there is so much in the film that is so right, it still manages to leave a bad taste in your mouth.