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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Murder
Läst till 1LI105 Populärlitteratur, 7,5 högskolepoäng
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.5 stars. The fact that the movie was (almost) perfectly cast helped me immensely (Kevin Spacey as Vincennes is pretty silly) in keeping track of this sprawling epic. A must for any noir fan. Trigger warning for pretty much everything including offensive racial language, but it is about asshole cops in the 50s.
4 STARS
"It's about threetortured souls in the 1950s L.A.P.D.: Ed Exley, the clean-cut cop who lives shivering in the shadow of hisdad, a legendary cop in the same department; Jack Vincennes, a cop who advises a Police Squad- like TV show and busts movie stars for payoffs from sleazy Hush-Hush magazine; and Bud White,a detective haunted by the sight of his dad murdering his mom.Ellroy himself was traumatized as a boy by his party-animal mother's murder. (See his memoir My Dark Places for the whole sordid story.)So it is clear that Bud is partly autobiographical. But Exley, whose shiny reputation conceals a dark secret,and Vincennes, who goes showbiz with a vengeance, reflect parts of Ellroy, too. L.A. Confidential holds enough plots for two or three books: the cops chase stolen gangland herointhrough a landscape littered with not-always-innocent corpses while succumbing to sexy sirens who havebeen surgically resculpted to resemble movie stars; a vile developer--based (unfairly) on Walt Disney-- schemes to make big bucks off Moochie Mouse; and the cops compete with the crooks to see who can bemore corrupt and violent." (From Amazon)
I loved the movie...and loved the book. It is a bit different than the movie as it expands on characters and plots. The novel is a way grittier and grand story. High recommend this novel to those who like noir, mysteries and suspense.
"It's about threetortured souls in the 1950s L.A.P.D.: Ed Exley, the clean-cut cop who lives shivering in the shadow of hisdad, a legendary cop in the same department; Jack Vincennes, a cop who advises a Police Squad- like TV show and busts movie stars for payoffs from sleazy Hush-Hush magazine; and Bud White,a detective haunted by the sight of his dad murdering his mom.Ellroy himself was traumatized as a boy by his party-animal mother's murder. (See his memoir My Dark Places for the whole sordid story.)So it is clear that Bud is partly autobiographical. But Exley, whose shiny reputation conceals a dark secret,and Vincennes, who goes showbiz with a vengeance, reflect parts of Ellroy, too. L.A. Confidential holds enough plots for two or three books: the cops chase stolen gangland herointhrough a landscape littered with not-always-innocent corpses while succumbing to sexy sirens who havebeen surgically resculpted to resemble movie stars; a vile developer--based (unfairly) on Walt Disney-- schemes to make big bucks off Moochie Mouse; and the cops compete with the crooks to see who can bemore corrupt and violent." (From Amazon)
I loved the movie...and loved the book. It is a bit different than the movie as it expands on characters and plots. The novel is a way grittier and grand story. High recommend this novel to those who like noir, mysteries and suspense.
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Ho iniziato questo libro con tanto entusiasmo. Volevo leggerlo e volevo amarlo. Le prime 80 pagine però sono state lente, cruente e troppo reali. Non l'avrei abbandonato perché leggo anche i libri che non mi piacciono.
Poi il libro si è aperto, si è approfondito ed è diventato il libro che volevo leggere. La trama è meravigliosa, i personaggi sono crudelmente reali: Bud con i suoi problemi con gli uomini che picchiano le donne, Ed che cerca in tutti i modi di emulare il padre e poi Jack che si è disintossicato dalla droga.
Lo stile di Ellroy è pulito e il contesto che crea è valido. Dalle sue parole traspare perfettamente il razzismo degli anni '50 e la crudeltà degli uomini.
L.A. Confidential è un libro bello, le ultime cento pagine si leggono veloci veloci e non ci si riesce a staccare. Vuoi sempre chiederti "perché?". Le risposte arrivano solo alla fine, con un finale straziante. L.A. Confidential è bello, profondo e racconta la perfetta corruzione di una città americana degli anni '50.
Poi il libro si è aperto, si è approfondito ed è diventato il libro che volevo leggere. La trama è meravigliosa, i personaggi sono crudelmente reali: Bud con i suoi problemi con gli uomini che picchiano le donne, Ed che cerca in tutti i modi di emulare il padre e poi Jack che si è disintossicato dalla droga.
Lo stile di Ellroy è pulito e il contesto che crea è valido. Dalle sue parole traspare perfettamente il razzismo degli anni '50 e la crudeltà degli uomini.
L.A. Confidential è un libro bello, le ultime cento pagine si leggono veloci veloci e non ci si riesce a staccare. Vuoi sempre chiederti "perché?". Le risposte arrivano solo alla fine, con un finale straziante. L.A. Confidential è bello, profondo e racconta la perfetta corruzione di una città americana degli anni '50.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Many names. Multiple angles. Cases all over the place. Confusing, maybe. Challenging, perhaps. Nothing wrong with that. Everything wrong with these characters though. All dirty. Dirty somehow. What a bunch. This L.A., man. Makes Sin City look like Utopia. Hardcore noir. Pitch black. Blood red. Written in a rat-tat-tat style. Raw like a burning abrasion, sleazy like a giallo flick. No, strike that. Sleazier. I mean, the rollerskating thing. Try erasing that from your memory. Not gonna happen. Not soon. Or try getting Dudley Smith out of your head. Mr. Intimidating. Impossible. Unforgettable. Like so many characters in this book. My kind of jam. I need a shower.