Attention all filmmakers: grit is not substance. Grit is what you put on top of substance to give it texture. The new cop thriller Triple 9 is such a dour and earthy experience that, if you’re not paying terribly close attention, it might even seem important. But it’s just a generic police drama and heist flick that’s full of stock character types and plot points we have seen before, over and over again, in better movies.
Ordinarily this is where I would go into detail about Triple 9, but the movie is so completely unremarkable that all of our time would best be spent doing something else. Suffice it to say John Hillcoat’s drama has a suspenseful premise but no suspense to speak of. A group of corrupt cops and ex-paramilitary personnel are forced by the Russian mafia to pull off a heist so dangerous, the only way to get away with it is to distract the entire police force by murdering one of their own. But instead of focusing on this disturbing idea, Triple 9 gets distracted by subplots and side quests and neglects to give their chosen victim, a rookie played by Casey Affleck, the screen time he needs to be worth saving.
Also: Interview | John Hillcoat on Grit, Rap Battles and ‘Triple 9’
Everything else about Triple 9, from the great actors in over the top roles (Kate Winslet, Michael Kenneth Williams, Woody Harrelson) to the overwrought melodrama (dead brothers, deadbeat dads) is so familiar and conventional that I spent the majority of the film wishing I was watching practically any other cop movie. By the time I realized that Predator 2 was a more interesting and salient commentary on both urban crime and the plight of our police, I decided Triple 9 was no longer worthy of a full review.
So instead, I have compiled a list of great cop movies that you should watch instead of Triple 9. If you haven’t seen any of these films, they will probably blow your minds. If you’ve seen every single one of them, just watch them again and your time will still be better spent. Triple 9 isn’t one of the worst cop movies ever made, far from it, but it’s so unremarkable that I just can’t recommend it in good conscience. I recommend these films instead.
9 Cop Movies I Wish I’d Watched Instead of ‘Triple 9’
Top Photo: Open Road Films
William Bibbiani (everyone calls him ‘Bibbs’) is Crave’s film content editor and critic. You can hear him every week on The B-Movies Podcast and watch him on the weekly YouTube series Most Craved and What the Flick. Follow his rantings on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.
9 Must-See Cop Movies
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The French Connection (1971)
William Friedkin's Oscar-winning classic, about two working class cops who uncover an international drug smuggling ring, still feels as inspired as it did in the early 1970s. The French Connection drips with realism, so the thrills thrill harder when they emerge naturally from the plot.
Photo: 20th Century Fox
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Heat (1995)
Al Pacino plays the cop, Robert De Niro plays the robber, and director Michael Mann plays them against each other in the slick and excellent Heat. No tale of good vs. evil here, just two men with jobs to do that put them at odds. Perhaps in another life they would have been friends. Instead, they have to face off in the most heart-pounding bank heist ever filmed.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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Hot Fuzz (2007)
The realities of police work, which involve an awful lot of paperwork, get a good goosing in Edgar Wright's inspired cop comedy. An overachieving police officer (Simon Pegg) is set to a small town where his partner (Nick Frost) is obsessed with action movies, and where a sinister conspiracy may or may not be afoot. What cops should be doing, and what we want to think they do, clash in hilarious ways in Hot Fuzz.
Photo: Rogue Pictures
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Infernal Affairs (2002)
The classic Hong Kong police thriller, about an undercover cop and an undercover criminal who undermine each other's missions, was remade by Martin Scorsese as the Oscar-winning The Departed. That film is also great, but it seems downright bloated compared to the original. Infernal Affairs is a slick, high-intensity thriller that stands on its own.
Photo: Media Asia Distribution
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L.A. Confidential (1997)
The sprawling 1950s Los Angeles of author James Ellroy came to vivid, complicate life in Curtis Hanson's skillful adaptation. A group of corrupt cops investigating different crimes discover that there are unexpected connections between them, and they struggle to do their jobs and either relocate or completely lose their souls in the process. Smart, exciting, involving drama.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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Narc (2002)
Joe Carnahan's intimate, visceral cop thriller stars Jason Patric and Ray Liotta as cops investigating the murder of an undercover officer, and discovering some very uncomfortable and dangerous truths in the process. Ray Liotta has rarely been better, and Carnahan's grainy photography and aggravated camera work give Narc a special energy.
Photo: Paramount Pictures / Lionsgate
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RoboCop (1987)
More than an action movie about a super cop, Paul Verhoeven's blistering social satire watches as a blue collar cog becomes a brainwashed cog in the corrupt machine and fights tooth and nail to reclaim his identity and do what's right. Awe-inspiring action and emotional storytelling combine with a vicious sense of humor to turn RoboCop into one of the best movies of the 1980s.
Photo: Orion Pictures
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Serpico (1973)
Al Pacino gives one of his greatest performances as Frank Serpico, an undercover cop whose efforts to expose the criminal actions of his fellow officers had tragic consequences. Doing the right thing sometimes seems hard, but in Serpico it feels damn near impossible. Suspenseful, great drama.
Photo: Paramount Pictures
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The Untouchables (1987)
A historically inaccurate but breathtakingly theatrical account of Elliot Ness's case against mob boss Al Capone, directed with zeal by Brian De Palma. The action soars, the acting explodes. It may not be good history, but The Untouchables is a great movie.
Photo: Paramount Pictures
