Bad Lieutenant

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Bad Lieutenant

NC-17

1992

1h 38m

Crime

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

76%

Tomatometer

51 Reviews

74%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

The Lieutenant (Harvey Keitel) is a corrupt cop steeped in gambling debt who exploits his authority to sexually harass teenage girls, embezzle money and abuse drugs. His troubles come to a head when a mob lackey delivers an ultimatum: pay off his debt, or else. His fate appears sealed. But when The Lieutenant learns that a $50,000 reward is being offered to whoever catches a pair of thugs who raped a nun (Frankie Thorn), he jumps at the opportunity, hoping that he can still redeem himself.

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Critics Consensus

Bad Lieutenant will challenge less desensitized viewers with its depiction of police corruption, but Harvey Keitel's committed performance makes it hard to turn away.

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Jake Cole

Slant Magazine

Even by the scuzzy standards of Abel Ferrara’s filmography, Bad Lieutenant is particularly filthy.

Jun 5, 2024

Full Review

Peter Rainer

Los Angeles Times

[Keitel] keeps us watching his descent without wanting to look away. Only an actor with tremendous reserves of power could accomplish that.

Jan 8, 2019

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Peter Travers

Rolling Stone

It's a powerhouse performance in a film of jabbing intensity and wit.

Jan 8, 2019

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

It may be atypical in its vivid unpleasantries, but this production isn’t particularly entertaining; its presentation of cops and crimes isn’t as original as it is merely boundary-pushing.

Rated: 5/10

Feb 6, 2025

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Keitel’s performance is astonishing, with the actor completely exposing himself physically, mentally, and emotionally.

Rated: 3/4

Jun 18, 2024

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Ferrara seeks to expose his subject. What this film is about is the performance, Keitel’s absolute bearing of his character’s soul.

Rated: 3.5/4

Aug 30, 2023

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Stephen C

One great classic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/29/24

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Dallas H

The Catholic guilt is spread on thick like Nutella on toast. As usual, Abel Ferrara loves to demonstrate the depravity of morality in the common human. Honestly, I prefer Ms. 45 over Bad Lieutenant, but this movie is filled with the in-our-face emotional strain. And it's crazy to see Zoë Lund appear in a small role as a drug junkie in this movie, as she also shared screenwriting credit with Ferrara and also appeared in the lead role in Ms. 45.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

09/25/24

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Sams K

Just great! One of Keitel best acting.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/10/24

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Noel P

The best film I saw from the 90s. And the best performance by Harvey Keitel I've seen. Raw, disturbing, and even a little funny at times. It's also ironically the best film that maps out the difficult Catholic concept of forgiveness and redemption.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/14/24

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KB B

I had high hopes considering the "expert" reviews but it got longer and longer during the last third. Harvey Keitel is a decent actor but definitely cannot carry a movie on his own. Watch if there's absolutely nothing else on.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/09/24

Full Review

jwcdood

Although, at this late date, BAD LIEUTENANT is a dated production, it's still a a very good [and very unusual] story with a killer performance by a great actor (Harvey Kietel) and certainly worth more than one watch! ✨🥴👍✨

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

12/01/23

Full Review

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Abel Ferrara

Director

Harvey Keitel

The Lieutenant

Frankie Thorn

The Nun

Zoë Lund

Zoe

Anthony Ruggiero

Lite

Eddie Daniels

Jersey Girl (driver)

Bad Lieutenant: Official Clip - She Forgives You

1:41

Bad Lieutenant: Official Clip - Fine Brown Stuff

2:59

Bad Lieutenant: Official Clip - I'm Sorry!

4:15

Bad Lieutenant: Official Clip - Routine Traffic Stop

4:18

Bad Lieutenant: Official Clip - Drug Counselor or Drug Dealer

2:30

Bad Lieutenant: Official Clip - Corner Store Altercation

2:14

Bad Lieutenant: Official Clip - Evidence

1:12

Bad Lieutenant: Official Clip - Forgiveness

3:26

Bad Lieutenant: Official Clip - Baseball Gambling

1:43

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Synopsis

The Lieutenant (Harvey Keitel) is a corrupt cop steeped in gambling debt who exploits his authority to sexually harass teenage girls, embezzle money and abuse drugs. His troubles come to a head when a mob lackey delivers an ultimatum: pay off his debt, or else. His fate appears sealed. But when The Lieutenant learns that a $50,000 reward is being offered to whoever catches a pair of thugs who raped a nun (Frankie Thorn), he jumps at the opportunity, hoping that he can still redeem himself.

Director: Abel Ferrara
Producer: Edward R. Pressman, Mary Kane
Screenwriter: Abel Ferrara, Zoë Lund
Production Co: Bad Lt. Productions
Rating: NC-17
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 1, 2007
Box Office (Gross USA): $47.5K
Runtime: 1h 38m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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