Stupidity: When White and Exley meet outside the motel and realise they've been set up, White suggests they leave, but Exley says it's too late. It wasn't even close to too late. There were no other people around, they had cars and there was a road right in front of them. Then they decide to go trap themselves inside the motel. It seems like they wanted to be shot.
La Confidential (1997)
1 stupidity
Directed by: Curtis Hanson
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, Kim Basinger, James Cromwell
Revealing mistake: When the body of Miss Lefferts is being viewed, the 'dead' girl blinks slightly. (00:34:35)
Bud White: Merry Christmas.
Lynn Bracken: Merry Christmas to you, officer.
Bud White: That obvious, huh?
Lynn Bracken: It's practically stamped on your forehead.
Trivia: Had the film been successfully adapted into a TV series, Jack Vincennes would have been played by Kiefer Sutherland. Coincidentally, one of Sutherland's co-stars in The Sentinel (2006) is Kim Basinger, who won an Oscar for her role in this film; James Cromwell played his father in season six of "24."
Question: Why did Exley appear so traumatised after killing the man in the elevator? He is, after all, a police officer in homicide, and he killed people before that. Also, did he kill him intentionally?
Chosen answer: A 12g shotgun blast at that range would cause an incredibly bloody death, especially as there is a good chance it hit the man in the face. Exley has killed a person in the line of duty before this, but not in such a spectacular way. And while he may not have meant to kill him he chose to shoot over letting the man escape.
The scene was building up tension beyond "Will Ed catch the Night Owl suspect?" Ed has lost his glasses and gets to the elevator as the doors close. He fires blindly into the elevator; for a split second, Ed took a risk: he could've shot an innocent bystander. His career flashes before his eyes. IIRC, it was filmed in a way to imply Ed didn't actually see the suspect get in the doors. The doors open. Ed realises the risk was worth it. This is a pivotal point in his character development.
Suggested correction: It's not uncommon for dead bodies to continue moving after death. Many internal parts of the body continue functioning in some fashion for hours after death and nerves and muscles can twitch.
raywest ★