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Righteous Kill

Righteous Kill

Crime · Thriller · Mystery · 2008

Two veteran New York City detectives work to identify the possible connection between a recent murder and a case they believe they solved years ago; is there a serial killer on the loose, and did they perhaps put the wrong person behind bars?

Movie details

Righteous Kill

“Most people respect the badge. Everybody respects the gun.”

2008 Crime · Thriller · Mystery 1h 41m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

5.9 / 10

Community rating

Two veteran New York City detectives work to identify the possible connection between a recent murder and a case they believe they solved years ago; is there a serial killer on the loose, and did they perhaps put the wrong person behind bars?

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Righteous Kill?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Wes Block is a detective who's put on the case of a serial killer whose victims are young and pretty women. The murders are getting personal when the killer chooses victims who are acquaintances of Block. Even his daughters are threatened.

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A private investigator helps a former flame solve the murder of her wealthy grandfather, who lived in a sprawling estate surrounded by his idiosyncratic family.

Luther: The Fallen Sun

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The Black Book

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War

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FBI agent Jack Crawford is out for revenge when his partner is killed and all clues point to the mysterious assassin Rogue. But when Rogue turns up years later to take care of some unfinished business, he triggers a violent clash of rival gangs. Will the truth come out before it's too late? And when the dust settles, who will remain standing?

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Jon Avnet

Written by

Russell Gewirtz

Robert De Niro

Robert De Niro

Turk

Al Pacino

Al Pacino

Rooster

50 Cent

50 Cent

Spider

Carla Gugino

Carla Gugino

Karen Corelli

John Leguizamo

John Leguizamo

Det. Simon Perez

Donnie Wahlberg

Donnie Wahlberg

Det. Ted Riley

Brian Dennehy

Brian Dennehy

Hingis

Court is in session

Put Righteous Kill on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Cool Ironist

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Prestige Tourist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.