This begins so well. Even the titles are eye-catching in that day-glow red and green. Actions is immediately confusing but dazzling with wonderful photography. A great sense of excitement is established in the first half hour but it is slightly concerning that with so many interested parties and police it is never absolutely clear what is going on. Then all becomes clear but the stunning visuals disappear and the action becomes almost laughable. It is then that I began to notice the inconsistent acting, due presumably to an element of improvisation encouraged by Friedkin. Matters are satisfactorily resolved in the end but that feeling of disengagement was never made good and it would discourage me from a second viewing despite all that fantastic early footage.

What is everyone smoking? I went in with high hopes and was let down by this awful film. Is it just nostalgia talking? I don't see why this is so beloved by film fans.I see labels like "groundbreaking", "cliche free", "gritty", "a different take on ___". It's NONE of those things! It's full of some of the biggest cop clichés of all time - and I know for a fact they didn't stem from this film. For example, 10 minutes in, one of the cops says "I'm too old for this s**t" - then he gets shot TWO DAYS FROM RETIREMENT! I almost fell out of my chair laughing at how ludicrous it was. It was like a parody of a cop film.Then there's the whole "the brooding cop doesn't want a new partner, but is forced to get along with him anyway". The lead isn't an anti-hero cop, he's just incompetent. He and his partner fall asleep at a stake out! He lets the guy he has in custody go see a "daughter" in hospital, not even checking with the hospital if she's related and knows the guy. Then he lets the criminal get away by taking his cuffs off in a hospital lift, and then getting the crap kicked out of him. RIDICULOUS!I know this film is from the '80s, but this is beyond your average '80s campy cheese factor. Numerous posing with one leg on a chair, with crotch in full view - tight jeans begging for mercy. Naked/half naked guys everywhere. It's not a big deal, it was just kind of laughable when all these guys are being macho with each other... then they're naked in a dressing room together, going about their business. The terrible soundtrack doesn't help. The main guy tries to act tough, but just comes off looking like a tool. Who wears a leather jacket without a shirt underneath? Plus, the main character is called Dick Chance. Yeah.The directing is hit and miss. Sometimes there's interesting shots, or techniques - I particularly liked the POV shot when the main guy is chasing after a criminal. The majority of the time though, the film has abrupt cuts which are jarring, but it not in an artistic, or meaningful way. It's just annoying, and feels like an amateur is behind the camera.It took three days for me to watch all of it. It was painfully bad. The only saving grace was the great acting from Dafoe and Turturro, but even they couldn't save this mess. Sorry for the long-winded post, but I felt passionate about this and want to make sure if anyone is on the fence about this - please, AVOID! If you want to watch a decent anti-hero cop film, I'd suggest watching Bad Lieutenant [1992], which is what I watched after this to cleanse myself after watching the prior trash. Bad Lieutenant does everything that this film wanted to do, but did it right - and went balls to the wall with it.

William Friedkin's 'To Live & Die in LA' is hands down one of the best cop movies ever made. It's as raw and hard-boiled as any gritty cop drama, including Friedkin's earlier 'The French Connection', and isn't bogged down with buddy-cop clichés that later burned out the genre by the early 1990s. William Petersen plays a secret service agent living on the edge, quite literally at times, as he takes extreme risks nearly every day on the job. When his partner is killed he tells his new partner, played by John Pankow, that he's going to get the murderer no matter what it takes. The killer is a counterfeiter named Masters (played by Willem Dafoe in a fine performance) who is also an artist. It's a curious twist that the killer commits crime in order to fund his art, which he routinely burns because he is perfectionist. He feels the same way about his other 'art': counterfeiting money.What I found most intriguing about Friedkin's film is its consistent avoidance of clichés. First off, Los Angeles looks ugly, industrial, and very inhospitable in this film. None of the conventional shots of fancy, upscale downtown or beautiful Long Beach. We also aren't given sentimental sob stories for Petersen's semi-suicidal behavior, nor are we given many 'buddy-buddy' moments between him and his new partner. The characters are revealed more by their actions than their words, which I think is more interesting. The two secret service agents are both professionals doing a job and oftentimes bending the rules (or outright breaking them) to get Masters. We aren't even treated to a true romance in the picture. Both Petersen and Masters have women they have sex with on the side, but neither of them seem to particularly love them and both use them for what they want (and likewise the women use them). The climax too, goes against convention in the handling of Petersen's character that many people still find rather shocking for a mainstream film. I, for one, found it both refreshing and daring to end it in such a manner.Finally, the score might be a tad dated by today's standards yet I enjoyed it and felt it added to the feeling of the film. Friedkin is famous for finding the right composers and music for his films (think Tangerine Dream for 'Sorcerer') and 'To Live & Die in LA' is no exception.For any out there who enjoys cop movies 'To Live & Die in LA' is a must see. Moreover, it truly belongs up there with Friedkin's other masterpieces like 'The Exorcist' and 'The French Connection'. It's a shame the film was a box office dud or we may have seen further Friedkin explorations of the down and dirty world of police work like we did in 'The French Connection' and 'To Live & Die in LA'.

By the end of the film, I thought it was a cheesy clichéd 80s crime thriller. But then I realized all of the films that I was comparing it to, copied off of this film. This film set the bar for the 80s crime thriller, and the crime thriller in general. Of course, it is undeniably 80s. Wang Chung provided the soundtrack. However, Friedken does not disappoint with his chase scenes. Chase scenes that some films today can't even hold a candle to. What adrenaline, there are not many films that can get your heart beating as fast as this one can. William Peterson gives a truly dynamite performance. But, personally, I believe Willem Dafoe stole the show. Nobody does the criminal like he does. Jesus Christ, he was so evil! This is a film that would not let me look away. I really was mesmerized by it. Friedken, thanks to the French Connection and this Film, is officially the king of the chase. What a wild ride, definitely worth a view.