Narc

Director: Joe Carnahan

Overview

"The gritty, crime-infested world of Joe Carnahan's Narc is perfectly realized on DVD. The 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer is precise in every way, from the frequently grainy shots to the deep, dense blacks. Colors, though muted often, still come across flawle

Product Details

Release Date:	06/17/2003
UPC:	0097363418344
Original Release:	2002
Rating:	R
Source:	Paramount
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, Dolby Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:45:00

Special Features

Closed Caption;Commentary by writer/director Joe Carnahan and editor John Gilroy; Featurettes: "Making the Deal," "Shooting Up," "The Visual Trip," "The Friedkin Connection"; Theatrical trailer; Widescreen version (enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs); Dolby Digital: English 5.1 Surround, English Dolby Surround, French 5.1 Surround; English subtitles

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Ray Liotta	Det. Lt. Henry R. Oak
Jason Patric	Det. Sgt. Nick Tellis
Chi McBride	Capt. Cheevers
Busta Rhymes	Darnell `Big D Love' Beery
Richard Chevolleau	Steeds
Anne Openshaw	Katherine Calvess,Actor
John Ortiz	Ruiz
Dan Leis	Elvin Dowd
Lloyd Adams	Walter Dandridge
Lina Felice	Jeanine Mueller
Alan C. Peterson	Freeman Franks
Karen Robinson	Liz Detmer
Booth Savage	Cecil Mitchum
Alan Van Sprang	Michael Calvess
Krista Bridges	Audrey Tellis
Thomas Patrice	Off. Marcotte
Meagan Issa	Little Girl
Cliff Martinez	Composer

Technical Credits

Joe Carnahan

Joe Carnahan	Screenwriter
Peter Block	Executive Producer
Eric Bryson	Stunts
Tom Cruise	Executive Producer
Randall Emmett	Executive Producer
Felicia Fasano	Casting
George Furla	Executive Producer
David C. Glasser	Executive Producer
Michael Z. Gordon	Executive Producer
Michelle Grace	Producer
John Laforet	Special Effects
Ray Liotta	Producer
Diane Nabatoff	Producer
Julius R. Nasso	Producer
Ken Quinn	Stunts
Adam Stone	Executive Producer
Mary Vernieu	Casting
Paula Wagner	Executive Producer
Clare Walker	Casting
Jeff G. Waxman	Executive Producer
Andy Emilio	Executive Producer
Randy Emhett	Executive Producer
Richard Penn	Sound/Sound Designer

Scene Index

Side #1 --
1. Stray Bullet
2. Dead Cop, Dead Ends
3. Oak
4. Street Name: Jimmy Fredricks
5. Bath Time
6. Wives
7. Kathryn
8. Played Like a Punk
9. Hitting the Wall
10. Beery & Steeds
11. A Dead Cop's Gun
12. Set it Straight
13. Ward of the State
14. The Truth
15. Credits

Menu

Side #1 --
Previews
Main Menu
Play
Setup
English 5.1 Surround
English Dolby Surround
French/Français
Commentary by Writer/Director Joe Carnahan and Editor John Gilroy
English Subtitles
No Subtitles
Special Features
Commentary by Writer/Director Joe Carnahan and Editor John Gilroy
Nark: Making the Deal
Narc: Shooting Up
Narc: The Visual Trip
The Friedkin Connection
Theatrical Trailer
Previews
Scene Selection

Editorial Reviews

A jarring and gritty tale of revenge and the search for redemption set against the decayed backdrops of inner-city Detroit, director Joe Carnahan's Narc offers a compelling crime story with actors Ray Liotta and Jason Patric in top form. Having tread familiar ground in the similarly-themed 1991 crime drama Rush, Patric turns in what might be his finest performance as a cop haunted by the mistakes of his past, but increasingly determined to redeem himself by aiding in the capture of a viscous cop-killer. Likewise, Liotta strikes a fierce chord as an unhinged and single-mindedly determined cop bent on capturing (and likely maiming) the drug dealers responsible for his former partner's demise. If Patric and Liotta had been underused and under-appreciated for some time, this film is a true testament to their remarkable ability to immerse themselves so much in character that the actor becomes a transparent vessel and the character a strikingly tangible and sympathetic entity into their own. If his freshman effort Blood, Guts, Bullets and Octane garnered director Carnahan the unfavorable stigma of a Tarantino rip-off artist, Narc find's Carnahan truly coming into his own as a compelling storyteller. Though at times the clichés of crime thrillers boil to the surface, Carnahan has the kind of creativity and energy to quickly shift those familiar conventions into something truly effective and satisfying, and by skillfully taking the time to make his characters as street-smart, sympathetic and intimidating as they should be, he wisely builds the intensity to an almost unbearable level leading into a showdown that is as satisfying as it is believable and true to form. The amount of time spent drawing the characters as complex and believable individuals may seem unusual for a police detective thriller, but it's precisely this approach that makes Narc's ultimate denouement so powerful. There are many moments in which sympathies are shifted and the perspectives questioned, and by skillfully employing a Rashomon-like technique as the film edges closer to the abyss, Carnahan displays a deft ability to keep his audience frantically guessing.