By Kelli Henderson/entertainment editor
Photo courtesy Open Road Films
Anyone who doesn’t have a headache going in to see End of Watch certainly will coming out.
Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña star in End of Watch as Officers Taylor and Orozco, two young LAPD partners trying to keep the streets of South Compton safe. As they patrol the streets, they come across a drug cartel out for blood in a routine traffic stop.
The film is the television show COPS on steroids. Although everyone has shirts on, the filming shows a plethora of car chases, drug busts and shootings. It is not for the faint of heart. Director and writer David Ayer brought real-life controversial incidents to the film. The R rating is there for a reason, with lots of blood and even more cursing.
The style of filming is the only drawback to End of Watch. Also on steroids is the found footage-shooting style Ayer used.
Gyllenhaal’s character films his daily routine on the job for a photography class. Although the style brings the feeling of being in the car with the officers, it is not pleasant when they are fighting or in any form of fast motion. Many of the scenes are blurred because of the camera’s proximity to the actors, and 109 minutes of this can hurt one’s eyes and brain.
That aside, the humor Ayer brings to Gyllenhaal and Peña’s banter is funny. The jokes are real and come across as authentic.
The two talk about things real men stuck in a car together would talk about.
End of Watch has a good plot with characters the audience can invest in. Just bring aspirin.
