How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:147
Fresh:54
Rotten:93
Average Rating:5.1/10
Consensus: Street Kings contains formulaic violence but no shred of intelligence.
Australian Rating: MA15+ [See Full Rating]
Genre: Dramas
Australian Theatrical Release:
Apr 17, 2008 Wide
US Box Office: $26,351,341
Synopsis: In STREET KINGS, a police thriller directed by David Ayer, Keanu Reeves plays Tom Ludlow, a veteran LAPD Vice Detective. Ludlow sets out on a quest to discover the killers of his former partner,... [More]
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Hugh Laurie, Chris Evans, Forest Whitaker
Director: David Ayer
If Ellroy weren't such a good writer of novels about the dark side of the American psyche, he'd be preposterous. Then again, perhaps he is perfect for these times and the city of most of his nightmares, Los Angeles.
Top CriticJames Ellroy's satisfyingly solid and complex story makes a powerful structure for David Ayer's film of corrupt cops and their milieu, with the violence balanced by characterisation
Top CriticThere's only the spectacle of crooked dunces slamming against each other
Click to read the article
Click to read the article
A lot of reviewers seem to have disliked Street Kings because of its negative view of the LA police, and perhaps the country at large. That is not a problem for me.
Everything here is predictable, from the tired plot whose revelations are deeply unsurprising to the gritty dialogue and casual everyday violence of the cops involved.
Click to read the article
Click to read the article
There is certainly something compelling in the film's ideas, but the way they're executed suggest that any true questions about morality and the law are just grist for the action mill.
A solid contemporary crime drama.
Keanu Reeves' bad-boy cop Tom Ludlow may not play by the rules, but the film sure does.
Competent but fatally lacking in the element of surprise. [Blu-Ray]
If you can forgive its stale dialogue, which at times seems so egregiously leaden that it might have been better suited to a Mad magazine parody, 'Street Kings' is a tense, aggressively absurd thriller.
While military man turned director Ayer implicates our culture steeped in violence and the damaging effects of trained killing, whether by police or in war, he's assembled such a deplorable LAPD rogues gallery, it's hard to tell which one is the worst.
Ayer's rapid pacing and solid work by the cast distract us from the script's shortcomings.
Ellroy, who also co-wrote the screenplay, and Ayer share an interest in L.A. after dark, and they explore the city's neon-bathed streets with the glee of children in a funhouse, watching the distortions of everyday people in bent mirrors.
I don't think there were really any bad scenes, but I found the overall film emotionally empty.
Granted, it doesn’t revolutionize the cop genre, but it definitely does a solid job of entertaining for its runtime, and as a movie-watcher (and lover)…ain’t much else that I can ask for than that.
[In the] surprisingly engrossing 'Street Kings,' we are presented with cops who live up to our worst nightmare of excessive force.
August 16, 2008:
Another wooden performance from Keanu Reeves in high-impact splatter flick. 
More...
August 08, 2008:
While military man turned director Ayer implicates our culture steeped in violence and the damaging effects of trained killing, whether by police or in war, he's assembled such a deplorable LAPD rogues gallery, it's hard to tell which one is the worst.
More...
April 23, 2008:
UK Box Office Breakdown: Craig's Fool Has Disasterous Opening
Daniel Craig's new film - Flashbacks of a Fool - suffers a disastrous opening weekend, coming in at only 11th in the charts. Fool's Gold and Happy Go Lucky are the big successes More...
April 17, 2008:
Box Office Guru Preview: Chan & Li Face Off Against Sarah Marshall
After four straight weeks of the box office falling significantly behind last year's pace, the marketplace is finally set to post a win thanks to a trio of new releases... More...
Tim Burton's costume designer talks to Movieline about her long collaboration with the filmmaker and Johnny Depp.
The director talks about puppetry perfection and his film, Fantastic Mr. Fox
We've got 20 copies of the hit TV series' Pilot Episode to giveaway.
Double passes up for grabs to the new comedy starring Paul Giamatti.
Get all the latest movie updates, reviews, interviews and features here.
Enough Prequel, Original Trilogy and Family Guy DVDs to fill a space cruiser
Everything from Dr. No to Quantum of Solace could be yours.
We're giving away the 10th Anniversary Blu-ray, plus Braveheart and the Rocky collection
IGN.com |
GameSpy |
Comrade |
Arena |
FilePlanet |
GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox |
Planets |
Vaults |
VE3D |
CheatsCodesGuides |
GameStats |
GamerMetrics
AskMen.com |
Rotten Tomatoes |
Direct2Drive |
Green Pixels
IGN RSS Feeds
Comment
