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Narc (film)
Encyclopedia
Narc is a 2002 crime film about corrupt police
involved in the illegal drug trade
. It was released to critical acclaim and moderate commercial success. It was written and directed by Joe Carnahan
. The plot revolves around the efforts of two police detectives as they search for the murderer of an undercover
police officer. As they proceed in the investigation they engage in suspect tactics and give viewers a glimpse into the seedy side of undercover work.
) chasing a drug dealer through the streets of Detroit after his identity has been discovered. After the dealer fatally injects a bystander with drugs (whom Tellis was forced to leave behind), he holds a young child hostage
. Tellis manages to shoot and kill the dealer before he can hurt the child. However, one of the bullets inadvertently hits the child's pregnant mother, causing her to eventually miscarry
.
Eighteen months later, Tellis is persuaded by the Detroit Police Department to return to the force to investigate the murder of another undercover narcotics officer, Michael Calvess. Tellis is reluctant, as his wife disapproves of him risking his life, and she wants him to spend more time at home with their baby. However, realizing there is very little else he can do for a living, he decides to read the files on the case and eventually agrees to come aboard, on two conditions. The first is that he will receive a desk job at the station if he secures a conviction. The second is that another detective, veteran Henry Oak (Ray Liotta
), whom Tellis becomes aware of through reading the investigation files on Calvess' death, is assigned to the case as well. Tellis' reason for wanting Oak is his opinion after reading the files that the only useful pieces in the investigation thus far came from him. Tellis is also informed by the department chief about Oak's reputation as a driven and effective policeman who is also unstable. Despite reservations, Oak is assigned to the case.
The two begin to build rapport while carrying out a violent investigation. Here we learn that Oak is a dedicated, although haunted cop who uses an excessive amount of violent force when facing criminals. Oak also believes that the department just wants the case buried and forgotten. During the investigation, Oak reveals that his wife died of cancer
, and that they never had any children together. He recalls a drug bust decades prior, where he found a ten year old girl naked, who had been sold for prostitution
by her stepfather for rent money. Oak became enraged and beat the man to a bloody pulp. He sees that case as being similar to the current one. Meanwhile, Tellis' wife becomes increasingly distressed for her husband's well-being. Tellis visits Calvess's widow Kathryn, and asks her questions about the relationship between the two of them while he was on the street, hoping to make a decision about his own private life. Oak turns up at the house during the conversation, and is furious that she is being persistently interviewed by police. He seems increasingly protective of Kathryn and her children's safety.
Tellis and Oak visit the scene of an apparent murder of a drug dealer and gun collector, who was shot dead in his bath. Tellis discovers the bullet had no fire-pin mark, and he surmises that the man was using it as a bong
and forgot that it was loaded. Once heated, the shotgun discharged, killing the drug user. After determining that this lead is fruitless, Tellis and Oak visit the house of a man who was involved in the shootout eighteen months ago that started the film. They find incriminating evidence, but nothing concrete that suggests he carried out the murder of Calvess, although they do find the police badge
of Calvess. However, the man impulsively turns a gun on them both, wounding Tellis in the neck, before Oak kills him in self-defense.
Returning home, Tellis is confronted by his wife, who leaves him as she can no longer bear to see him endangering his life. Tellis and Oak are told that the case has been closed, as the deceased suspect is quickly and conveniently determined to be Calvess's killer. They are furious, as they believe the killer has yet to be found, and continue their investigation independently. Oak determines that the main suspects are hiding out at an auto body shop. Once there, Oak finds and disarms one suspect while Tellis chases one outside and shoots him in the leg. After they are both tied up, Oak attempts to force a confession
out of both of them. Tellis is getting increasingly suspicious of some of Oak's tactics, especially after viewing many files that suggest Oak had been repeatedly discharging a lady who has been arrest
ed on several occasions. Oak finds many police issue guns in the trunk
of one of the men's cars (after he shoots the tires on the other's car), including that which belonged to Calvess, and attacks both men violently, at which point Tellis steps in to calm him down and tells him to get CSI tools from the car outside. When he leaves the room, Tellis locks the door, turns on the tape recorder
, and asks for the truth. The dealers explain that Calvess was the one who blew Tellis' cover eighteen months ago (seen at the start of the film), causing the shootout
. They also recount Calvess's degeneration into chemical dependency. On the day of the murder, Calvess tried to make a deal with the two dealers, but it went badly. At that point, Oak arrived at the other end of the tunnel, trailing Calvess to confirm rumors that he had become an addict. Calvess went for his weapon, which was the dealers' justification for attacking him. The two men then ran off as Oak neared and began firing at them.
Tellis leaves the room and confronts Oak, telling him that the dealers claim that Oak shot at both of them four times, leaving a wound on one dealer's shoulder, before murdering Calvess himself for being a drug addict. Oak denies this, but the issue of his relationship with Calvess's wife Kathryn is then brought up. As it turns out, Kathryn was the ten year old girl Oak found all those years ago who was being prostituted. Based on Oak's earlier accounts, he considers her a daughter he never had
, and has remained close all this time. He has since been protecting her by covering up several crime
s that she committed in her teenage years. Tellis then tells Oak that he is going to make the arrest on his own, but Oak beats him with his shotgun
and resumes brutalizing the dealers. He turns the tape recorder back on and attempts to beat a confession out of the two men, while threatening to shoot them. Tellis breaks into their car, retrieves a gun, and enters the building. He is forced to shoot Oak when he refuses to put his gun down. Tellis runs to aid Oak and, realizing he's dying, pleads with him to tell him the truth about what happened on the night Calvess died.
Oak explains (silently, shown in flashback) that it was Calvess who shot at the dealers as they ran away from Oak, leaving the shoulder bullet wound. Oak had an argument with him, explaining that he had finally had enough of defending Calvess and was going to turn him in to the Department. In a moment of despair, Calvess took his own gun and shot himself
in Oak's presence. Oak had been protecting his name and family ever since, so Calvess' wife can have his pension
and support her two daughters. If the Department found it was a suicide instead of a murder, Calvess' wife would not have received the pension. Oak's motive in the movie was to convict Mike's "murderers," the dealers who he felt had turned him into a junkie. Oak then dies in Tellis's arms, leaving the confession on tape. The two dealers are arrested outside, and Tellis has a few minutes to decide whether to hand the tape over to the police, a decision we never discover as the film's closing credits
roll.
. Though set in Detroit
, the majority of the film was shot in Toronto
, with only one day of actually shooting in Detroit.
and an 82% "Fresh" rating from Rotten Tomatoes
.
Police corruption
Police corruption is a specific form of police misconduct designed to obtain financial benefits, other personal gain, or career advancement for a police officer or officers in exchange for not pursuing, or selectively pursuing, an investigation or arrest....
involved in the illegal drug trade
Illegal drug trade
The illegal drug trade is a global black market, dedicated to cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of those substances which are subject to drug prohibition laws. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs by drug prohibition laws.A UN report said the...
. It was released to critical acclaim and moderate commercial success. It was written and directed by Joe Carnahan
Joe Carnahan
Joseph Aaron "Joe" Carnahan is an American independent film director, screenwriter, producer and actor best known for his films Blood, Guts, Bullets and Octane, Narc, Smokin' Aces and The A-Team...
. The plot revolves around the efforts of two police detectives as they search for the murderer of an undercover
Undercover
Being undercover is disguising one's own identity or using an assumed identity for the purposes of gaining the trust of an individual or organization to learn secret information or to gain the trust of targeted individuals in order to gain information or evidence...
police officer. As they proceed in the investigation they engage in suspect tactics and give viewers a glimpse into the seedy side of undercover work.
Plot
The film opens with an intense scene of undercover narcotics officer Nick Tellis (Jason PatricJason Patric
Jason Patric is an American film, television and stage actor. He may be best-known for his roles in the films The Lost Boys, Sleepers, Your Friends & Neighbors, Narc, The Losers and Speed 2: Cruise Control. His father was actor/playwright Jason Miller...
) chasing a drug dealer through the streets of Detroit after his identity has been discovered. After the dealer fatally injects a bystander with drugs (whom Tellis was forced to leave behind), he holds a young child hostage
Hostage
A hostage is a person or entity which is held by a captor. The original definition meant that this was handed over by one of two belligerent parties to the other or seized as security for the carrying out of an agreement, or as a preventive measure against certain acts of war...
. Tellis manages to shoot and kill the dealer before he can hurt the child. However, one of the bullets inadvertently hits the child's pregnant mother, causing her to eventually miscarry
Miscarriage
Miscarriage or spontaneous abortion is the spontaneous end of a pregnancy at a stage where the embryo or fetus is incapable of surviving independently, generally defined in humans at prior to 20 weeks of gestation...
.
Eighteen months later, Tellis is persuaded by the Detroit Police Department to return to the force to investigate the murder of another undercover narcotics officer, Michael Calvess. Tellis is reluctant, as his wife disapproves of him risking his life, and she wants him to spend more time at home with their baby. However, realizing there is very little else he can do for a living, he decides to read the files on the case and eventually agrees to come aboard, on two conditions. The first is that he will receive a desk job at the station if he secures a conviction. The second is that another detective, veteran Henry Oak (Ray Liotta
Ray Liotta
[File:Ray Liotta is an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Henry Hill in the crime-drama Goodfellas, directed by Martin Scorsese and his role as Shoeless Joe Jackson in Field of Dreams...
), whom Tellis becomes aware of through reading the investigation files on Calvess' death, is assigned to the case as well. Tellis' reason for wanting Oak is his opinion after reading the files that the only useful pieces in the investigation thus far came from him. Tellis is also informed by the department chief about Oak's reputation as a driven and effective policeman who is also unstable. Despite reservations, Oak is assigned to the case.
The two begin to build rapport while carrying out a violent investigation. Here we learn that Oak is a dedicated, although haunted cop who uses an excessive amount of violent force when facing criminals. Oak also believes that the department just wants the case buried and forgotten. During the investigation, Oak reveals that his wife died of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
, and that they never had any children together. He recalls a drug bust decades prior, where he found a ten year old girl naked, who had been sold for prostitution
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
by her stepfather for rent money. Oak became enraged and beat the man to a bloody pulp. He sees that case as being similar to the current one. Meanwhile, Tellis' wife becomes increasingly distressed for her husband's well-being. Tellis visits Calvess's widow Kathryn, and asks her questions about the relationship between the two of them while he was on the street, hoping to make a decision about his own private life. Oak turns up at the house during the conversation, and is furious that she is being persistently interviewed by police. He seems increasingly protective of Kathryn and her children's safety.
Tellis and Oak visit the scene of an apparent murder of a drug dealer and gun collector, who was shot dead in his bath. Tellis discovers the bullet had no fire-pin mark, and he surmises that the man was using it as a bong
Bong
A bong is a filtration device/apparatus generally used for smoking cannabis, tobacco,or other herbal substances.In construction and function a bong is similar to a hookah, except smaller and more portable...
and forgot that it was loaded. Once heated, the shotgun discharged, killing the drug user. After determining that this lead is fruitless, Tellis and Oak visit the house of a man who was involved in the shootout eighteen months ago that started the film. They find incriminating evidence, but nothing concrete that suggests he carried out the murder of Calvess, although they do find the police badge
Badge
A badge is a device or fashion accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath , a sign of legitimate employment or student status, or as a simple...
of Calvess. However, the man impulsively turns a gun on them both, wounding Tellis in the neck, before Oak kills him in self-defense.
Returning home, Tellis is confronted by his wife, who leaves him as she can no longer bear to see him endangering his life. Tellis and Oak are told that the case has been closed, as the deceased suspect is quickly and conveniently determined to be Calvess's killer. They are furious, as they believe the killer has yet to be found, and continue their investigation independently. Oak determines that the main suspects are hiding out at an auto body shop. Once there, Oak finds and disarms one suspect while Tellis chases one outside and shoots him in the leg. After they are both tied up, Oak attempts to force a confession
Confession (legal)
In the law of criminal evidence, a confession is a statement by a suspect in crime which is adverse to that person. Some authorities, such as Black's Law Dictionary, define a confession in more narrow terms, e.g...
out of both of them. Tellis is getting increasingly suspicious of some of Oak's tactics, especially after viewing many files that suggest Oak had been repeatedly discharging a lady who has been arrest
Arrest
An arrest is the act of depriving a person of his or her liberty usually in relation to the purported investigation and prevention of crime and presenting into the criminal justice system or harm to oneself or others...
ed on several occasions. Oak finds many police issue guns in the trunk
Trunk (automobile)
The trunk or boot of an automobile or car is the vehicle's main storage, luggage, or cargo compartment. Trunk is used in North American English and Jamaican English; boot is used elsewhere in the English speaking world. Trunk is also primarily used in many non-English speaking regions, such as...
of one of the men's cars (after he shoots the tires on the other's car), including that which belonged to Calvess, and attacks both men violently, at which point Tellis steps in to calm him down and tells him to get CSI tools from the car outside. When he leaves the room, Tellis locks the door, turns on the tape recorder
Tape recorder
An audio tape recorder, tape deck, reel-to-reel tape deck, cassette deck or tape machine is an audio storage device that records and plays back sounds, including articulated voices, usually using magnetic tape, either wound on a reel or in a cassette, for storage...
, and asks for the truth. The dealers explain that Calvess was the one who blew Tellis' cover eighteen months ago (seen at the start of the film), causing the shootout
Shootout
A shootout is a gun battle between armed groups. A shootout often, but not necessarily, pits law enforcement against criminal elements; it could also involve two groups outside of law enforcement, such as rival gangs. A shootout in a military context A shootout is a gun battle between armed groups....
. They also recount Calvess's degeneration into chemical dependency. On the day of the murder, Calvess tried to make a deal with the two dealers, but it went badly. At that point, Oak arrived at the other end of the tunnel, trailing Calvess to confirm rumors that he had become an addict. Calvess went for his weapon, which was the dealers' justification for attacking him. The two men then ran off as Oak neared and began firing at them.
Tellis leaves the room and confronts Oak, telling him that the dealers claim that Oak shot at both of them four times, leaving a wound on one dealer's shoulder, before murdering Calvess himself for being a drug addict. Oak denies this, but the issue of his relationship with Calvess's wife Kathryn is then brought up. As it turns out, Kathryn was the ten year old girl Oak found all those years ago who was being prostituted. Based on Oak's earlier accounts, he considers her a daughter he never had
Foster care
Foster care is the term used for a system in which a minor who has been made a ward is placed in the private home of a state certified caregiver referred to as a "foster parent"....
, and has remained close all this time. He has since been protecting her by covering up several crime
Crime
Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
s that she committed in her teenage years. Tellis then tells Oak that he is going to make the arrest on his own, but Oak beats him with his shotgun
Shotgun
A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
and resumes brutalizing the dealers. He turns the tape recorder back on and attempts to beat a confession out of the two men, while threatening to shoot them. Tellis breaks into their car, retrieves a gun, and enters the building. He is forced to shoot Oak when he refuses to put his gun down. Tellis runs to aid Oak and, realizing he's dying, pleads with him to tell him the truth about what happened on the night Calvess died.
Oak explains (silently, shown in flashback) that it was Calvess who shot at the dealers as they ran away from Oak, leaving the shoulder bullet wound. Oak had an argument with him, explaining that he had finally had enough of defending Calvess and was going to turn him in to the Department. In a moment of despair, Calvess took his own gun and shot himself
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
in Oak's presence. Oak had been protecting his name and family ever since, so Calvess' wife can have his pension
Pension
In general, a pension is an arrangement to provide people with an income when they are no longer earning a regular income from employment. Pensions should not be confused with severance pay; the former is paid in regular installments, while the latter is paid in one lump sum.The terms retirement...
and support her two daughters. If the Department found it was a suicide instead of a murder, Calvess' wife would not have received the pension. Oak's motive in the movie was to convict Mike's "murderers," the dealers who he felt had turned him into a junkie. Oak then dies in Tellis's arms, leaving the confession on tape. The two dealers are arrested outside, and Tellis has a few minutes to decide whether to hand the tape over to the police, a decision we never discover as the film's closing credits
Closing credits
Closing credits or end credits are added at the end of a motion picture, television program, or video game to list the cast and crew involved in the production. They usually appear as a list of names in small type, which either flip very quickly from page to page, or move smoothly across the...
roll.
Production
The film had 21 producers, one of whom was Tom CruiseTom Cruise
Thomas Cruise Mapother IV , better known as Tom Cruise, is an American film actor and producer. He has been nominated for three Academy Awards and he has won three Golden Globe Awards....
. Though set in Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
, the majority of the film was shot in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, with only one day of actually shooting in Detroit.
Reception
The film was well reviewed by most critics, receiving a metascore of 70 from MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
and an 82% "Fresh" rating from Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.
Box office
Narc earned $10,456,659 in the United States and Canada and took another $2,168,088 in other territories for a combined worldwide gross of $12,633,747, nearly doubling the production budget of $6.5 million.Cast
- Jason PatricJason PatricJason Patric is an American film, television and stage actor. He may be best-known for his roles in the films The Lost Boys, Sleepers, Your Friends & Neighbors, Narc, The Losers and Speed 2: Cruise Control. His father was actor/playwright Jason Miller...
as Nick Tellis - Ray LiottaRay Liotta[File:Ray Liotta is an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Henry Hill in the crime-drama Goodfellas, directed by Martin Scorsese and his role as Shoeless Joe Jackson in Field of Dreams...
as Henry Oak - Chi McBrideChi McBrideKenneth "Chi" McBride is an American actor. He starred as Steven Harper on the series Boston Public, as Emerson Cod on Pushing Daisies, and recently appeared in Fox's drama Human Target.-Early life:...
as Captain Cheevers - Lloyd Adams as Walter Dandridge
- Stacey FarberStacey FarberStacey Anne Farber is a Canadian actress who is best known for playing Eleanor "Ellie" Nash in seasons 2 through 7 of the television series Degrassi: The Next Generation....
as Young Kathryn - Busta RhymesBusta RhymesTrevor Tahiem Smith, Jr., better known by his stage name Busta Rhymes ,Smith is an American rapper, producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the alias Busta Rhymes after NFL wide receiver George "Buster" Rhymes...
as Darnell 'Big D Love' Beery