L.A. Confidential

L.A. Confidential is a 1997 neo-noir film based on James Ellroy's 1990 novel of the same title, the third book in his L.A. Quartet. Both the book and the film tell the story of a group of LAPD officers in the year 1953, and the intersection of police corruption and Hollywood celebrity.
Mise-en-secne
- Black and white hood; innocent/nun
- Lighting through bars; could represent jail bars
- Phone; old fashioned
- Cigar and whiskey; mainly men
- Suits/shirts/smart/neat
Camera Work
- Camera angle used so as not to show her face
- Shot of news paper article/gun/police badge helps show corruption
- Over shoulder; Point of view; Pan down to bodies, the camera slowly tilts to reveal whats happened.
Editing
- Slow cross cutting in the nite owl murder scene; blood/emprty till/Ed; this helps build up tension; the use of slow camera movements is also used to add tension.
- Jump cuts used to show the passing of time.
Sound
- Voice overs
- Christmas music in background helps portray the time of year.
- short / quick/low tone music helps build up tension before findin bodies.
Chracters
- Sgt Jack
- Karren; love interest
- Hutchins; reporter
- Bud White; very protective over women
- Ed Exley; glasses/bullied
- Dudley; head of police
Narrative/plot
- Trouble in paradise
- Corrupt/crime
- Drugs
- Best police in world
- Hollywood
- Police department; insulting prisoners
- Nite Owl
- Opens with voice overs of journalist; carries on throughout
All L.A. Confidential notes
- Jack puts drugs in his pocket; close up shot; corrupt police
- Pan of alcohol being poured; corrupt police
- Fighting in cells (mexicans); police not playing by the rules; Ed Exely shown as a good cop
- Bud and Jack will not testify but Ed will; intelegent/quick
- 'Badge of honour'; gives the police power; misuse it; don't deserve it
- Press has the power; don't want to look bad
- deep long shots used throughout; common of film noir
- Jack walking towards camera revealed in background
- Low key lighting/drak/night time; common of film noir
- Police taking suspects to isolated abandon areas to beat them up; corrupt police
- Venetion blinds open; revelaing deep shot of location
- Long corridors; low lighting
- Costumes; shirts/suits/smart/ neat/hair styles
- Murder; Nite Owl; Links to dark/night; common of film noir
- Split screen of her dead body and her talking; flashback for Bud White
- Racism displayed over who murdered the victims in the Nite Owl
- Sharp adjustment of light when door is opened and Bud White is revealed
- Potential relationship between Bud and Mrs Bracken
- Good cop; makes mistake by killing negros
- Bud kill negrro old man for beating women;hides evidence make it look like he took a shot at him
- Dudley kills Jack because he was on to something
- Day light scene at the end; when everything is revealed; femme fatal in yellow dress.
Binary Opositions
- Christmas vs Fighting
- Hero vs Abuser
- Loyalty vs Deception