DARK BLUE Review: Bringing Kurt Russell's Dark Side to 4K UHD

Ron Shelton is a filmmaker who very quickly found his niche with sports stories mixed through with comedy, romance, and drama.

Bull Durham and White Men Can't Jump were two early hits, and his best film remains 1996's Tin Cup. (I will not be taking arguments to that point at this time.) He's moved beyond sports more than once, but the results have rarely found the same kind of critical and commercial support.

Of those non-sports films, it's 2002's Dark Blue that stands tallest and remains the most effective.

The city of Los Angeles is on edge. The Rodney King trial is awaiting a verdict, and Det. Eldon Perry (Kurt Russell) is investigating a robbery homicide that left four people dead. Perry's an effective cop but a dirty one, too, and he's dragging his young partner, Det. Bobby Keough (Scott Speedman) down with him. The pair reach a moral breaking point, though, just as the King verdict sets the city ablaze.

Dark Blue's script is credited to David Ayer from a story by James Ellroy, and both men's filmographies come through here. The police are presented as an organization rife with corruption but still home to morally sound crusaders, in this case in the form of Ving Rhames' Assistant Chief Arthur Holland. Rhames' performance is maybe a bit too goody two-shoes, but it's also possible that's in contrast to just how vile and corrupt the other cops are here.

From Brendan Gleeson's murderous chief on down, the L.A. police are not portrayed in the most flattering of lights. History has shown that to probably be well deserved, though, so no one's crying about it. The most interesting and engaging of these dirty cops is Perry, and that's due as much to Russell's performance as to the writing.

Russell's played some darker, morally dubious characters before in films like The Deadly Tower, Escape from New York, and Captain Ron, but he's as close to irredeemable here as he has ever been. Still, Russell succeeds in making us almost want to give him a second chance. He captures the human behind the spiral from good cop to bad man, and it makes his eventual awakening all the more affecting.

There's weight to the drama, both big and small, and the film also delivers a handful of action sequences that pair suspense with tactical gun play and foot chases. A meatier look into the various players might have yielded a heavier film, but as it stands, Dark Blue still delivers a compelling look the ease with which corruption calls the shots. Pairing it with the King verdict and the understandable outrage that followed draws some sharp conclusions regarding the choices made by people both in and out of power.

Imprint's new 4K restoration with Dolby Vision leaves Dark Blue looking noticeably better than it does even on its previous Blu-ray releases. Colors are bright and detailed, shadows are inky and dense, and the film retains enough natural grain to feel authentic in its picture. Extras include two commentary tracks -- one archival track with director Ron Shelton, and one new track featuring film historians Alain Silver and Jim Ursini. Both are worth a listen for fans, but the new track is a bit livelier and features more consistently engaging information.

Extras also include some new interviews including one with Shelton that sees him reflecting on stepping outside of his own sports film shadow, one with Lolita Davidovich about her interest in dark characters and writing, and one with composer Terence Blanchard on his unnecessary worry that he might overpower the film with his music. Also included are some archival featurettes, interviews, and marketing materials.