James Woods does extremely well as can be expected in this film based on a novel by James Ellroy of "L.A. Confidential" fame. The original title "Blood on the Moon" would have been a more striking choice, with the title "Cop" suggesting a certain generic quality about this whole thing, which isn't exactly far off the mark. This movie does have a large air of familiarity to it, overall, starting with Woods' character Lloyd Hopkins, an intense and driven individual who has his own way of doing things.
Lloyd is a weary man determined to teach his daughter early on that the world can be a bad and ugly place, and it's Lloyds' assertion that innocence and naivety is what really kills young women - and he's proved correct in regards to a serial murder case he's stubbornly pursuing. Mostly, what we get here is good, solid, straightforward, no frills storytelling: the story might be familiar, but the execution is still quite competent. Woods and his director James B. Harris, who'd previously worked together on 1982s' "Fast-Walking", also served as the producers here.
It does help the movie that it does have that rather glum, film noir style to it, enhanced by Michel Colombiers' moody music score. Although the story plays out in such a way that we can sort of see where things are going, it never makes things too obvious and in fact the true identity of the killer is not revealed until just before the final act. This leads to a pretty suspenseful finale in a school gym with Woods and the killer playing a game of cat and mouse - not to mention one of the most kick ass endings to a movie of this kind, with a memorable quote from Woods.
Very good supporting performances are another heavy asset, with lovely Lesley Ann Warren as the feminist writer and would be romantic interest, Charles Durning, a steady presence as Woods' good friend on the force, Raymond J. Barry, as a ramrod straight and humourless superior, Charles Haid as a crooked deputy with a disgusting past and present, and Randi Brooks as the "entertainer" who provides Woods with some information. Woods makes for a commendably flawed yet compelling protagonist - not a gentleman who's one dimensional, as he's quite tender with his daughter, yet his "dog with a bone" mentality does get him into a great deal of trouble.
A good and consistently watchable, if not really remarkable, movie.
Seven out of 10.
Lloyd is a weary man determined to teach his daughter early on that the world can be a bad and ugly place, and it's Lloyds' assertion that innocence and naivety is what really kills young women - and he's proved correct in regards to a serial murder case he's stubbornly pursuing. Mostly, what we get here is good, solid, straightforward, no frills storytelling: the story might be familiar, but the execution is still quite competent. Woods and his director James B. Harris, who'd previously worked together on 1982s' "Fast-Walking", also served as the producers here.
It does help the movie that it does have that rather glum, film noir style to it, enhanced by Michel Colombiers' moody music score. Although the story plays out in such a way that we can sort of see where things are going, it never makes things too obvious and in fact the true identity of the killer is not revealed until just before the final act. This leads to a pretty suspenseful finale in a school gym with Woods and the killer playing a game of cat and mouse - not to mention one of the most kick ass endings to a movie of this kind, with a memorable quote from Woods.
Very good supporting performances are another heavy asset, with lovely Lesley Ann Warren as the feminist writer and would be romantic interest, Charles Durning, a steady presence as Woods' good friend on the force, Raymond J. Barry, as a ramrod straight and humourless superior, Charles Haid as a crooked deputy with a disgusting past and present, and Randi Brooks as the "entertainer" who provides Woods with some information. Woods makes for a commendably flawed yet compelling protagonist - not a gentleman who's one dimensional, as he's quite tender with his daughter, yet his "dog with a bone" mentality does get him into a great deal of trouble.
A good and consistently watchable, if not really remarkable, movie.
Seven out of 10.