The film that I would like to talk about is:
L.A. Confidential (1997)
L.A. Confidential is a 1997 American neo-noir crime film directed, produced and co-written by Curtis Hanson. The screenplay by Hanson and Brian Helgeland is based on James Ellroy’s 1990 novel of the same name, the third book in his L.A. Quartet series.
The film tells the story of a group of LAPD officers in 1953, and the intersection of police corruption and Hollywood celebrity. The title refers to the 1950s scandal magazine Confidential, portrayed in the film as Hush-Hush.
Unlike traditional drama films, there are three protagonists in this film: Wendell White, Jack Vincennes and Edmund Exley.
Chracters Background
Wendell White was borned in an unhappy family, his mother was beaten to death by his drunk father, which made him obsess with punishing men who abuse women. White is quite strong and has become a detective for years. He is hot-tempered, but also smart.
Edmund Exley is a new detective. His father used to be the detective lieutenant in LAPD and was killed by an unknown assailant whom Exley secretly nicknamed “Rollo Tomasi”. Ed, despite his thirst for justice, is not without his demons. He is a political animal, smart and brave.
Jack Vincennes is a narcotics detective who moonlights as a technical advisor on Badge of Honor, a TV police drama series. Sid Hudgens, publisher of the Hush-Hush tabloid magazine, tips Vincennes on celebrity criminal activity so that he can make high-profile arrests for Sid’s publication.
Story Arc Breakdown (8 steps)
- You
The story started with a background of the 1950s Los Angeles, where gangs and drugs were rampant. LAPD vanished the reality and people never knows the dark side of LA.
After that, Wendell White, one of the main character, punched and punished a man who hurt his wife on Christmas Eve. He then met a woman at a bar and was attracted by her beauty.
At the sametime, Jack Vincennes, with the help of the publisher of Hush-Hush tabloid magazine Sid Hudgens, arrested an actor for taking drugs. Edmund Exley, however, was on his duty in police office that night.
Then a police office accident happened, which caused the resignment of White’s partner Stensland. Jack Vincennes was removed from Narcotics to Vice and Edmund Exley, who testified the whole accident, was raised to detective lieutenant of LAPD.
- Need
After the restruction in LAPD, a robbery and multiple homicide happened at the Nite Owl coffee shop. Stensland was one of the victims. Exley took the case and started searching.
- Go
Exley and Vincennes arrest three African-American felons for the crime. Exley questions these African-American felons and find a girl that they kidnapped before.
At the same time, White find an advanced prostitution organization and met with one of prostitute Lynn Bracken, who is also the woman that White saw in the bar. He also save the kidnapped girl.
- Search
Three African-American felons later escape from police custody and are killed by Exley in a shootout. Exley becomes a hero and the crime fighter in LA. Vincennes then gets back to the show as the technical advisor. White helps precinct captain Dudley Smith punish criminals and falls in love with Lynn Bracken.
- Find
Although the Nite Owl case appears solved, Exley and White investigate further, discovering evidence of corruption all around them.
Hudgens involves Vincennes in setting up a homosexual tryst between struggling actor Matt Reynolds and District Attorney Ellis Loew, intending to create a lucrative scandal. After Reynolds is found murdered, a guilt-ridden Vincennes joins Exley’s investigation to find the killer.
- Take
Vincennes finds out that all the victims and crimes are related to LAPD precinct captain Dudley Smith. Vinecennes pays a visit to Smith and is shooted by him. Vinecennes dies after murmuring “Rollo Tomasi”, the fictional character that Exley told him.
- Return
The next day, Exley’s suspicions are aroused when Smith asks him who “Rollo Tomasi” is. He searched more information and realized that Smith is the true murder. Smith then enraged White to kill Exley, trying to let them kill each other.
At the police station, White and Exley fight, but stop when both realize that Smith is corrupt. They then search more evidence and are sured that LAPD has existential crisis.
Smith lures Exley and White into an ambush. After the gunfight Smith is injoured and suggests Exley to hide the truth. Exley refuses his suggestion and then kills Smith before police arrives.
- Change
At the police station, Exley explains what he, Vincennes and White learned about Smith’s corruption. The LAPD decides to protect their image by saying Smith died a hero in the shootout, while awarding Exley a second medal for bravery. Outside city hall, Exley says goodbye to Lynn and White before watching them drive off to Lynn’s home in Arizona.
Characters’ Archetypes Breakdown
Frankly, characters in L.A Confidential are quite complicated and can not be easily analyzed with the 8 Kinds of Archetypes of Hero Characters principle. Therefore, I tend to analyze these characters based on what they did and then match they jobs in this film.
Edmund Exley:
A Hero character but also a Shapeshifter, a Mentor. He is ambitious and fulls of justice. He uses his actions to prove that he is a good detective, which even affects Jack Vincennes and Wendell White’s personalities. With the help of Vincennes and White, he finally finds out the truth.
Wendell White:
Also a Hero character but more like a Threshold guardian or a Sidekicks character. He is more powerful than Exley, helping Exley find the truth.
Jack Vincennes:
A great Sidekicks character. He is an old fox in LAPD and has his own secret. He finally moved by Exlley and feels responsible to help bring justice to his city.
Dudley Smith:
A Shadow character, bad cop. Smart, dangerous, secretive.
Sid Hudgens:
Not easy to define this character, more like a Trickster.
Lynn Bracken:
Sidekicks, helping Bud and his stuck-up colleague Ed Exley solve a crime that goes deep into the heart of L.A.’s underbelly. She is smart and has independent personality.
Main Character Timeline Before Film Start
Wendell White: borned in unhappy family- raised by his uncle and their family- became a detective in LAPD, solved several cases with his partner Stensland- live alone in LA
Edmund Exley: borned in a simple family- like reading books and learning-talked with his father quite often, admired his father but dislike his job, which is dangerous- his father died in accident, the willing of finding the murder drives him to become a sergeant in LAPD- under his father’s fame, Exley trys his best to catch up with his father
Jack Vincennes: used to be an young active detective who is passionate with catching crinimals and solving cases- after years he realizes that LAPD is a political area, there is no justice at all- feels depressed and becomes fish in troubled waters