“A wildly ambitious slow burn that succeeds immensely, powered by one of the best performances of Woody Harrelson’s career.”
Words from our TIFF review of Oren Moverman‘s L.A. cop-drama “Rampart,” which have been echoed throughout the film community, particularly in praise for Harrelson’s performance as Dave “Date Rape” Brown. The thesp is sure to be the front and centre of Millenium Entertainment‘s awards season campaign for the film, a notion affirmed by the new poster for the “Rampart” unveiled by EW which is dominated by Harrelson’s grim, menacing face.
Set in the early ‘90s in midst of a plethora of scandals that hit the LAPD, Moverman’s film follows veteran officer Dave Brown (Harrelson), the last of a breed of renegade cops, as he struggles to take care of his family, and fights for his own survival. But the film is less about controversies that hit the force, and more about how the slowly declining moral barometer of one man eventually consumes nearly every facet of his life from his career, to his relationships and alliances with his friends and colleagues. It’s an intense character study of man whose deeply rooted flaws come to define him in ways he can longer control.
Harrelson bounces off a strong supporting cast in place as well with Moverman-regulars Ben Foster (who also produces here and talked up Harrelson’s award season chances way back in January) and Steve Buscemi returning to co-star along side Robin Wright, Anne Heche, Sigourney Weaver, Ice Cube, Cynthia Nixon and Brie Larson.
The film will now hit L.A. and N.Y. for an Oscar-qualifying one week run starting November 23rd before returning to theaters in January.