Dragged Across ConcretePeople who believe that they are entitled to something usually are the ones who are least entitled to it. Dragged Across Concrete is a neo-noir crime movie about a pair of cops on suspension--the senior Brett Ridgeman (Mel Gibson), and the junior, Anthony Lurasetti (Vince Vaughn). They feel the financial pinch of being without pay for six weeks, so Brett decides to take advantage of the time to indulge in a scheme to rob a known drug dealer named Lorentz Vogelmann (Thomas Kretschmann). Brett believes that he is owed "appropriate compensation" for his longtime efforts in law enforcement, and entices Anthony into his criminal plot.
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Cop movies have been a cinematic staple for decades, especially "buddy cop" movies. Dragged Across Concrete superficially appears to be a buddy cop movie at first glance, but it isn't really, despite some key casting of Mel Gibson, who all but defined the buddy cop genre with Lethal Weapon. Gibson isn't the same kind of wild and self-destructive cop he was in that movie, although he is still wild and self-destructive in this one, just in a different fashion. These two partners are suspended following a drug bust where they used excessive force to cow a drug dealer called Vasquez (Noel G.). After baiting Vasquez out onto the landing of the apartment building, Brett holds him at gunpoint while pressing his boot onto his neck. The two cops describe it as "throwing cast iron", an internal euphemism it seems meant to describe police brutality. The irony is that it is not only effective in keeping Vasquez quelled, but their threatening and superior attitude helps them stay safe by employing fear. And yet, the question remains: is it necessary? The answer to that depends much on the viewer, but I believe that the message in Dragged Across Concrete is "no, it isn't necessary". Case in point: Brett and Anthony are not "hero cops"; they speak to each other and even their boss, Chief Lieutenant Calvert (Don Johnson) with casual bigotry and racism. This isn't just an act to gain an advantage in a tense work situation; they actually think this way, with Brett presumably grooming Anthony to carry on his cynical legacy. And this is where the film really deviates from the buddy cop genre, where despite their foibles and fables, the heroes of those movies are generally likable. Brett and Anthony are designed to be unlikable, which also makes Gibson's casting especially disarming, owing to his natural charisma. After his suspension, Brett pressures an old contact, a men's clothing store owner named Friedrich (Udo Kier), by reminding him that he let his son go years back for a crime so that he could leverage the favor later. In other words, Brett is far from the hard-working cop given a bad rap that he sees himself to be. He is dirty, but not in the Dirty Harry sense that he sees himself to be. Despite these character flaws, we see that he is a family man whose income supports his ex-cop wife, Melanie (Laurie Holden), who suffers from multiple sclerosis, and his kindly daughter, Sara (Jordyn Ashley Olson), who is frequently accosted by black youths on her way home from school. In a crucial scene, we see her having a cup of soda dumped on her by one of the youths on a bicycle, who rejoins his scumbag friends and laughs about the prank. Brett describes these events as "assaults", not just "harassment". One would think that a cop would know the difference, but he lets his emotions get the better of him, and believes himself entitled to cast judgment. Certainly no parent would tolerate this kind of abuse, but Brett and Melanie see this as a precursor to these kids eventually raping Sara. This seems like quite a leap, but in their heads, in the tense world of law enforcement they know, they have been conditioned to already suspect the worse. So stir all this frustration, humiliation, fear and arrogance in Brett into one big pot and you end up with a cop who believes that he deserves something more than his position affords him. That's no different of a mindset than a criminal's.
Dragged Across Concrete is also unorthodox for a cop movie because it focuses extensively on more subtle moments to define its characters instead of by way of action set pieces. So even calling this a "cop movie" feels like its misleading, since the expectations audiences have of that genre are almost uniformly subverted here. Dragged Across Concrete embraces realism over heightened staging, which makes scenes all the more chilling when the violence escalates. After Brett pitches his idea to Anthony, they stake out an apartment complex where Vogelmann has been reported to be hiding out. These stakeouts are slow-moving, but emphasize the patience required for a detective to truly stalk a criminal. They watch as Voglemann and a couple of "bodyguards" drive off, prompting Brett to follow at a discrete distance, tailing the crooks. These are fascinatingly authentic scenes, and really make you feel the tension of tailing a car, but without all of the cinematic trappings usually found in cop movies. There are also a couple of seemingly unrelated shootings by men dressed in full black military outfits, robbing stores and people then executing their victims. In both cases, the shooters--credited as "Black Gloves" (Primo Allon) and "Grey Gloves" (Matthew MacCaull)--use racial slurs or other racially insensitive props to emphasize that they aren't just amoral killers, but bigots as well. When it turns out that they are Vogelmann's partners for what turns out to be a bank robbery, there is the unmistakable sense that their clique--led by the German accented Vogelmann--are in fact neo-Nazis. The prologue of Dragged Across Concrete concerns a young black man recently released from prison named Henry Johns (Tory Kittles). Henry, we discover, has agreed to be one of Vogelmann's bodyguards along with his childhood friend, known as "Biscuit" (Michael Jai White). Understandably, Henry is suspicious of Vogelmann's intentions, and has prepared for betrayal by concealing a pair of cellophane-wrapped pistols for him and Biscuit for when things go south. Despite the inherent danger, Henry is motivated to participate in this venture because he wants to take care of his mother, Jennifer (Vanessa Bell Calloway), who has a bit too casually turned to prostitution to support her and her younger, disabled son and Henry's brother, Ethan (Myles Truitt). So Henry and Brett share a common interest: to give their families a better life than they know, and both are a bit too comfortable breaking the law and endangering others to get it. Ultimately, their similarities help define Dragged Across Concrete as a rare crime film that isn't a morality tale. Those who have concluded that the film espouses a kind of "right-wing agenda" or "ideology" haven't truly watched the film. Otherwise, they would have seen that there is nothing that makes this way of life for anyone justifiable, and that our "heroes" do not deserve that appellation. Money becomes the great prize at the finish line, and only the most canny and deadly will claim it--the "root of all evil". Is this the kind of world we should aspire to live in and extol its virtues? No, but it is the world of Dragged Across Concrete, where life in the fictional city of "Bulwark" is dirty, and where only the dirty can make it big...and not even most of them.
Recommended for: Fans of a slow-paced crime thriller which focuses on dialogue to build tension and brutal realism to unnerve audiences. Dragged Across Concrete is an unorthodox movie, so audiences expecting your typical action movie will probably be better served looking elsewhere. Nevertheless, the hard boiled story of corrupt cops and robbers evokes the kind of nihilistic realism and moral ambiguity found in the excellent comic series, "Criminal", by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. (Definitely check it out before watching for best results.)
Dragged Across Concrete is also unorthodox for a cop movie because it focuses extensively on more subtle moments to define its characters instead of by way of action set pieces. So even calling this a "cop movie" feels like its misleading, since the expectations audiences have of that genre are almost uniformly subverted here. Dragged Across Concrete embraces realism over heightened staging, which makes scenes all the more chilling when the violence escalates. After Brett pitches his idea to Anthony, they stake out an apartment complex where Vogelmann has been reported to be hiding out. These stakeouts are slow-moving, but emphasize the patience required for a detective to truly stalk a criminal. They watch as Voglemann and a couple of "bodyguards" drive off, prompting Brett to follow at a discrete distance, tailing the crooks. These are fascinatingly authentic scenes, and really make you feel the tension of tailing a car, but without all of the cinematic trappings usually found in cop movies. There are also a couple of seemingly unrelated shootings by men dressed in full black military outfits, robbing stores and people then executing their victims. In both cases, the shooters--credited as "Black Gloves" (Primo Allon) and "Grey Gloves" (Matthew MacCaull)--use racial slurs or other racially insensitive props to emphasize that they aren't just amoral killers, but bigots as well. When it turns out that they are Vogelmann's partners for what turns out to be a bank robbery, there is the unmistakable sense that their clique--led by the German accented Vogelmann--are in fact neo-Nazis. The prologue of Dragged Across Concrete concerns a young black man recently released from prison named Henry Johns (Tory Kittles). Henry, we discover, has agreed to be one of Vogelmann's bodyguards along with his childhood friend, known as "Biscuit" (Michael Jai White). Understandably, Henry is suspicious of Vogelmann's intentions, and has prepared for betrayal by concealing a pair of cellophane-wrapped pistols for him and Biscuit for when things go south. Despite the inherent danger, Henry is motivated to participate in this venture because he wants to take care of his mother, Jennifer (Vanessa Bell Calloway), who has a bit too casually turned to prostitution to support her and her younger, disabled son and Henry's brother, Ethan (Myles Truitt). So Henry and Brett share a common interest: to give their families a better life than they know, and both are a bit too comfortable breaking the law and endangering others to get it. Ultimately, their similarities help define Dragged Across Concrete as a rare crime film that isn't a morality tale. Those who have concluded that the film espouses a kind of "right-wing agenda" or "ideology" haven't truly watched the film. Otherwise, they would have seen that there is nothing that makes this way of life for anyone justifiable, and that our "heroes" do not deserve that appellation. Money becomes the great prize at the finish line, and only the most canny and deadly will claim it--the "root of all evil". Is this the kind of world we should aspire to live in and extol its virtues? No, but it is the world of Dragged Across Concrete, where life in the fictional city of "Bulwark" is dirty, and where only the dirty can make it big...and not even most of them.
Recommended for: Fans of a slow-paced crime thriller which focuses on dialogue to build tension and brutal realism to unnerve audiences. Dragged Across Concrete is an unorthodox movie, so audiences expecting your typical action movie will probably be better served looking elsewhere. Nevertheless, the hard boiled story of corrupt cops and robbers evokes the kind of nihilistic realism and moral ambiguity found in the excellent comic series, "Criminal", by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. (Definitely check it out before watching for best results.)