Sunday, September 23, 2012

End of Watch: Different Perspective on a Movie about Police Officers



This past weekend, I decided to go to the movies and see End of Watch.  To be completely honest, I was not even sure what the movie was about.  But, based on the previews, it appeared to be an action packed movie.  If you have not seen the movie, but plan to do so, continue reading with caution.  I will not spoil the ending, but I will discuss certain scenes from the movie.        

The movie is about the friendship of two police officers who are assigned to protect and serve in the mean streets of South Central, Los Angeles.  Officers Brian Taylor (played by Jake Gyllenhaal) and Mike Zavalo (played by Michael Pena) are the officers’ lives chronicled in the movie.  David Ayer directed End of Watch and he also directed Training Day.  As much as I enjoyed Training Day, End of Watch is completely different on almost every level.  The Los Angeles Police Department (“LAPD) has been the subject of many scandals over the course of U.S. history.  LAPD officers were implicated in the Rodney King beating, the O.J. Simpson trial, and even in the murders and arrests of countless other innocent people.  That said, I am not surprised the LAPD is portrayed negatively on the big screen.  This movie does not take that view.  It shows two officers who are men of high moral standards.


This movie is not a typical police “buddy” movie like Lethal Weapon, Bad Boys, Beverly Hills Cop, Die Hard, 48 Hours and The Last Boyscout.  Those movies are good, but each movie is not realistic in terms of the partnership between the police officers.  This movie showed us how Taylor and Zavalo were friends and also why they were close.  I think both officers represent the norm, in that they are honest, hard working, non-corrupt professionals.  They both had differences, but their core values were very much aligned.  Both officers loved their families, believed in doing the right thing (not the easy thing), would risk life and limb to save a person and really believed in the concept of brotherhood.  Some people claim to be brothers, but never treat each other that way.  These two cops “talked the talk” and “walked the walk.” 

This movie made me think about police officers in a way I never had done before.  It increased my appreciation for the tough job police officers have to do.  It made me appreciate police officers’ spouses, who know that their wife/husband can be killed in the line of duty any given day.  Sometimes people become frustrated with police officers.  How many people get mad at police officers when they get speeding tickets for going five miles over the speed limit?  We often ask ourselves the rhetorical question: Don’t you have something better to do than give me a speeding ticket?!  Why don’t you fight “real crime” and leave me alone!?  Bad police officers are often portrayed by the media and movie directors.  But, just as attorneys are often portrayed as dishonest people, I believe an overwhelming majority of police officers are good, honest people.

Regardless of how you feel about police officers, it would be very difficult to deny that they have an extremely difficult job.  They are charged with protecting and serving the public from the bad element that certainly exists.  Also, they do this job, while being grossly underpaid and underappreciated.  David Ayer does an excellent job bringing together the “other side.”  He truly showed how police officers can be heroes.  It kind of made me think of the way firefighters are often portrayed as fearless, selfless heroes.  Good police officers should be seen in the same light.

My favorite scene from the movie occurred when Zavalo and Taylor responded to an emergency call about a house being on fire.  They arrived at the house, after being on duty all day, and saw a woman running from her burning house.  She was screaming and crying hysterically that her children were still in the house.  Instinctively, Zavalo charges into the house, with Taylor following behind him.  The scene was particularly powerful because Zavalo’s wife was pregnant with their first child.  He did not think about himself, or family.  He was only interested in doing the right thing and saving the children.  Zavalo and Taylor climbed the stairs to the childrens' bedroom, as the house was becoming even more engulfed by flames.  They grabbed the children from the burning house, but as soon as they brought the kids outside, the mother said that her daughter was still inside the burning house.  Again, Zavato and Taylor darted back into the burning house, which by that time, was literally a ticking time bomb.  They saved the child, but narrowly escaped death.  The scene embodied the selflessness with which many police officers perform their jobs.  It is truly a powerful scene.      

This movie discussed many serious topics, including human trafficking.  In one scene, the officers found themselves following a lead that led them to a house full of slaves being trafficked for money.  It also discussed the problem with drug trafficking and the impact South American drug cartels have on the drug trade in the United States.  There are even a few scenes in the movie that discussed the importance of the union of marriage and discouraged infidelity.

If you have not seen this movie, you should definitely check out.        

Follow the Gentleman's Report 

Peace

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