3. Bad Lieutenant - The Lieutenant
Harvey Keitel gives an astonishing performance as a corrupt, degenerate policeman from hell. The Lieutenant drops his kids off at school and then takes a wee sniff of cocaine. His first case is a double murder and then he chases after some drug dealers who are pretty surprised that a police Lieutenant is looking to score crack. After a bit of crack smoking, it's away to an apartment for the Lieutenant who proceeds to have a threesome with two women. A nun is raped by two ne'er do wells in a chapel. The Lieutenant spies on the nun being examined in the hospital and hears all of the gory details of the case. The nun has a forgiving attitude to her attackers, believing what happened was an act of God. The Lieutenant, in addition to the rest of his vices, has a massive gambling problem and his drinking and drug taking escalate through out the movie. At a crime scene he comes across drugs and puts them in his pocket - they fall out of his pocket in front of his horrified colleagues. He gets two young girls to simulate oral sex for him in their car while he masturbates. Wracked with gambling debts, high to the gills on drink and drugs, the Lieutenant wanders into the church where the nun was raped and offers to kill her assailants for her. The nun reiterates that this is not necessary - she has forgiven her attackers. The Lieutenant cracks up completely in the church begging the crucifix of Jesus to forgive him for his sins. It's a bit late for that the Lieutenant finds out when he is shot by persons unknown in a car, purely for being a cop. An ignominious end for an ignominious character, Bad Lieutenant paints a picture of a man in moral purgatory. Keitel's character is dripping with heinous deeds and perversions. Alcohol, cocaine, crack, corruption, sexual coercion, gambling - and then some. He utterly lacks a moral compass but you can see that he despises himself for his degenerate acts. There is possible redemption for the Lieutenant whenever he confesses his sins in a Catholic church. At the end of the movie, he is actively redeeming himself in the way he handles the rapists. But he is too mired in perversion and corruption to be saved, so his death is necessary - really his death puts an end to his torment. Director Abel Ferrara creates a heinous character with the Lieutenant and Harvey Keitel really makes him come alive with a naturalistic performance that must have been very emotionally draining for Keitel - that is how good and convincing he is in the role. Ferrara and Keitel team up to give an unforgettable portrait of a hopelessly lost, depraved degenerate.