Tagged: Policeman
Michael Douglas’s Taupe Suit in Basic Instinct
Michael Douglas as Nick Curran in Basic Instinct (1992).
Vitals
Michael Douglas as Nick Curran, homicide detective with a troubled past
San Francisco, April 1991
Film: Basic Instinct
Release Date: March 20, 1992
Director: Paul Verhoeven
Costume Designer: Ellen Mirojnick
Background
There have been a few persistent requests to analyze Michael Douglas’ tailored suits and sport jackets in the controversial thriller Basic Instinct, best known for what Sharon Stone wasn’t wearing on screen as opposed to what Michael Douglas was wearing.
Described in his book The Devil’s Guide to Hollywood as an exercise to create the lowest common denominator screenplay possible, writer Joe Eszterhas completed his script within two weeks all while reportedly listening to The Rolling Stones non-stop. Eszterhas sold the script three days later for the astronomical sum of $3 million, cynically reattaining his mantle as the highest paid screenwriter in Hollywood.
Justified – Raylan’s Layered Flannel and Brown Henley
Timothy Olyphant as Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens on Justified (Episode 2.13: “Bloody Harlan”, 2011).
Vitals
Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens, old-fashioned and stoic Deputy U.S. Marshal
Harlan County, Kentucky, Fall 2010
Series: Justified
Episodes:
– “The Life Inside” (Episode 2.02, Director: Jon Avnet, Air Date: February 16, 2011)
– “The Spoil” (Episode 2.08, Director: Michael Watkins, Air Date: March 30, 2011)
– “Bloody Harlan” (Episode 2.13, Director: Michael Dinner, Air Date: May 4, 2011)
Creator: Graham Yost
Costume Designer: Patia Prouty
Background
Justified took greater measures to embrace the series’ potential in its rural Kentucky setting during the second season, which is arguably one of the show’s best. Continue reading
Justified – Raylan’s Black Flannel Shirt and T with Jeans
Timothy Olyphant as Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens on Justified (Episode 5.08: “Whistle Past the Graveyard”).
Vitals
Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens, old-fashioned Deputy U.S. Marshal
Harlan County, Kentucky, Spring 2014
Series: Justified
Episodes:
– “The Kids Aren’t All Right” (Episode 5.02, Director: Bill Johnson, Air Date: January 14, 2014)
– “Good Intentions” (Episode 5.03, Director: Dean Parisot, Air Date: January 21, 2014)
– “Whistle Past the Graveyard” (Episode 5.08, Director: Peter Werner, Air Date: March 4, 2014)
– “The Toll” (Episode 5.11, Director: Jon Avnet, Air Date: March 25, 2014)
Creator: Graham Yost
Costume Designer: Patia Prouty
Background
With the Kentucky Derby upon us this weekend, BAMF Style is returning to Harlan County to check in with one of our favorite residents of the state, Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens.
Justified‘s penultimate season finds Raylan Givens primarily facing off against the gator farmers of Dewey Crowe’s criminal family, led by his oldest brother Darryl Jr. (Michael Rapaport) who proves to be a much more menacing nemesis than the tragically dimwitted Dewey (Damon Herriman). Fans who first met the hapless Dewey in the pilot episode, irresponsibly brandishing a shotgun retrieved from the trunk of his Cadillac while a gator-tooth necklace clings to his “Heil Hitler”-tattooed neck must have been surprised to see that the scrappy little hoodlum was developed to the point of having such a fascinatingly imposing family, but that’s just the magic of the potential that Elmore Leonard gives to all of his characters. Continue reading
Justified – Raylan’s Black 1-Button Suit
Timothy Olyphant as Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens on Justified (Episode 1.03, “Fixer”).
Vitals
Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens, old school Deputy U.S. Marshal
Harlan County, Kentucky, Spring 2010
Series: Justified
Episodes:
– “Fixer” (Episode 1.03, Director: Fred Keller, Air Date: March 30, 2010)
– “The Hammer” (Episode 1.10, Director: John Dahl, Air Date: May 18, 2010)
– “The Moonshine War” (Episode 2.01, Director: Adam Arkin, Air Date: February 9, 2011)
– “Cottonmouth” (Episode 2.05, Director: Michael Watkins, Air Date: March 9, 2011)
– “The Spoil” (Episode 2.08, Director: Michael Watkins, Air Date: March 30, 2011)
– “Reckoning” (Episode 2.12, Director: Adam Arkin, Air Date: April 27, 2011)
Creator: Graham Yost
Costume Designers: Ane Crabtree (Season 1) & Patia Prouty (Season 2)
Background
A laconic, black-suited lawman with a troubled personal life and deadly accuracy with a firearm. The first name that would come to mind for most people is Wyatt Earp. It’s no coincidence that Justified‘s showrunners also ensured that the description would fit Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens to a T.
You are every inch the goddamn gunslinger I’ve heard.
…is Judge Mike Reardon’s praise for Raylan in “The Hammer”, and it is a very apt description given the lawman’s throwback tendencies to an era when gunslingers roamed the dusty streets of the old west. Continue reading
Denzel Washington in Inside Man
Denzel Washington as Det. Keith Frazier in Inside Man (2006).
Vitals
Denzel Washington as Keith Frazier, NYPD detective
New York City, August 2005
Film: Inside Man
Release Date: March 24, 2006
Director: Spike Lee
Costume Designer: Donna Berwick
Background
Thirty years after Al Pacino electrified audiences in Dog Day Afternoon, Spike Lee released Inside Man, another gripping film about a mid-day New York City bank robbery involving hostages, double-crosses, and character-driven comic moments biting into the suspense.
While Dog Day Afternoon focuses primarily on the criminals, Inside Man shifts focus to the other side of the law as the charismatic and somewhat cocky Detective Keith Frazier (Denzel Washington) is assigned to handle the robbery. His adversary is far more cunning than the emotional Sonny of Dog Day Afternoon, and Frazier is just the guy to match his wits. As Frazier himself bemoans:
Who ever heard of a bank robbers escaping on a plane with fifty hostages? You’ve seen Dog Day Afternoon! You’re stalling! Why? I don’t know.
Justified – Raylan’s Double Denim and Red Plaid Shirt
Timothy Olyphant as Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens on Justified (Episode 2.11: “Full Commitment”, 2011).
Vitals
Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens, old-fashioned and stoic Deputy U.S. Marshal
Harlan County, Kentucky, Spring 2010
Series: Justified
Episodes: “Fixer” (Episode 1.03), “The Collection” (Episode 1.06), and “Full Commitment” (Episode 2.11)
Air Dates: March 30, 2010 (1.03), April 20, 2010 (1.06), and April 20, 2011 (2.11)
Directors: Fred Keller (1.03), Rob Holcomb (1.06), and Peter Werner (2.11)
Creator: Graham Yost
Costume Designers: Ane Crabtree (Season 1) & Patia Prouty (Season 2)
Background
When America needed an American hero, Elmore Leonard gave us Raylan Givens. An independent-minded, old-fashioned, and gun-handy lawman, Raylan sees himself more as John Wayne than John McClane. The series began by establishing him as a no-nonsense U.S. Marshal who backs up his word when he gives a “gun thug” 24 hours to leave town. Once he’s transferred back to his birthplace among the blue-collar hillfolk of eastern Kentucky, he’s far more at home in his cowboy hat, riding boots, and jeans than he was in Miami. Continue reading
Gangster Squad – Jerry’s Brown Double-Breasted Suit
Ryan Gosling as Sgt. Jerry Wooters in Gangster Squad (2013).
Vitals
Ryan Gosling as Jerry Wooters, dapper LAPD detective-sergeant
Los Angeles, August 1949
Film: Gangster Squad
Release Date: January 11, 2013
Director: Ruben Fleischer
Costume Designer: Mary Zophres
Background
Continuing BAMF Style’s recent string of neo-noir period film posts following a swaggering L.A. detective decked out in period attire, I decided to take another look at the recent movie Gangster Squad.
Described (by me) as L.A. Confidential for the video game crowd, Gangster Squad is loosely based on the true story of LAPD detectives John O’Mara and Jerry Wooters’ team that took a head-on approach to breaking Mickey Cohen’s rackets in the ’40s and ’50s. Although stylish, well-casted, and full of thrilling action pieces, Gangster Squad received some criticism for its lack of character development and condensing the multi-decade efforts of these detectives into just a few months in late 1949. Continue reading
L.A. Confidential: Jack Vincennes’ Studebaker & Off-Duty Sportcoat
Kevin Spacey as Sgt. Jack Vincennes in L.A. Confidential (1997).
Vitals
Kevin Spacey as Sgt. Jack Vincennes, swaggering LAPD “celebrity” narcotics detective
Los Angeles, Spring 1953
Film: L.A. Confidential
Release Date: September 19, 1997
Director: Curtis Hanson
Costume Designer: Ruth Myers
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
After binge-watching three seasons of House of Cards, it’s refreshing to revisit the days when Kevin Spacey was far less murderously calculating. Sure, he was also a psychopathic serial killer in Se7en and a diabolical master criminal in The Usual Suspects, but for many, his introduction was a charming turn as the laidback and endearingly morally bankrupt LAPD Sergeant Jack Vincennes. Continue reading
The French Connection – Popeye Doyle’s Light Brown Suit
Gene Hackman as “Popeye” Doyle in The French Connection (1971)
Vitals
Gene Hackman as Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle, gruff NYPD narcotics detective
Brooklyn, December 1970
Film: The French Connection
Release Date: October 9, 1971
Director: William Friedkin
Costume Designer: Joseph Fretwell III
Background
To celebrate this weekend’s Academy Awards ceremony, BAMF Style is looking at The French Connection, which took home five Oscars in 1972 including Best Picture and—for Gene Hackman’s portrayal of unorthodox narc “Popeye” Doyle—Best Actor. It was the first R-rated movie to win the coveted Best Picture award, and its gritty realism set the tone for one of the greatest decades in American filmmaking. Continue reading
Popeye Doyle’s Peacoat and Pontiac
Gene Hackman as “Popeye” Doyle in The French Connection (1971)
Vitals
Gene Hackman as Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle, rough but dedicated NYPD narcotics detective
Brooklyn, December 1970
Film: The French Connection
Release Date: October 9, 1971
Director: William Friedkin
Costume Designer: Joseph Fretwell III
Background
Car chases have been ingrained in American cinema since the early days of the Keystone Kops. As the interest in cars grew, auto manufacturers began highlighting their most innovative products through on-screen action. The James Bond franchise innovated the use of car chases with Goldfinger‘s gadget-laden Aston Martin DB5 and a conveniently placed Ford Mustang convertible. The Mustang poked its head out again for the seminal chase in Bullitt as Steve McQueen faced off against a black ’68 Dodge Charger in his Mustang GT-390. After Bullitt, filmmakers began exploring the possibilities of cars on film. New, exciting cars were showcased like the new Dodge Challenger in Vanishing Point to the new Mustang Mach 1 in Diamonds are Forever.
For The French Connection, William Friedkin’s 1971 film based on Robin Moore’s book about intrepid NYPD cops Eddie Egan and Sonny Grosso, the car chase formula was injected with something new. Rather than the super-cool hero coolly chasing a villain in his super-cool car, the film places its ragged protagonist off-duty cop in an ordinary sedan commandeered from a civilian. Not only that, but this villain isn’t in a car; rather, he has hijacked an elevated train as Popeye is forced to race the train to each stop. Continue reading
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