End of Watch (2012)

Partners in the LA police work a hard neighborhood and get themselves marked for death by the cartel.  The best thing about this movie is the vibe of real friendship between the guys and the way that each is both decent and hard.  No, wait, the BEST thing about this movie is Anna Kendrick as the new girl in Officer Taylor's life -- she’s a delight and we see immediately why he’d be smitten.

The worst thing about the film was the handheld cam conceit.  Sure, they did a good job making the shaky footage acceptable through explanation (one of them is taking a film class and this is for a project), but then why must everything jiggle before our eyes when the footage ISN’T being filmed by the cops?  And how many semesters does this college elective class span anyway?

The story boils down to a fairly standard hard-edged cop story, elevated by the relationships - realistic mostly for the everyday mundaneness of them - and the way we become participants in their lives. Still, I may be spoiled by quality cop shows like The Wire and The Shield.  Several seasons getting to know characters is going to be way more effective in making the audience care than what can be achieved in what is, basically, a single "very special" episode.

B+