Writer: Siti Munawirah Mustaffa

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Watch this if you liked: “Training Day”

From "Training Day" to "Street Kings", those who follow David Ayer's work closely can clearly see strong dedications towards urban life in South Central Los Angeles. Only this time, instead of street crimes and police corruption, more limelight is placed on the strong bonds between two cops who lead ordinary lives, but are subsequently brought into extraordinary occasions.

Opening with a high speed police chase and shooting in South Central Los Angeles, the film features Jake Gyllenhaal as Bryan Taylor and Michael Pena as Miguel Zavala; two cops cum brothers for life whose thirst for thrills soon lead them into becoming the town's accomplished heroes as they unravel cases of firearms possession, human trafficking and even helped rescue a family from house fire.

Instead of conventional filming, Ayer decides to opt for handheld footage - supposedly taken by both sides of the law, i.e. Gyllenhaal's Taylor and Pena's Zavala as well as the crooks from the ghetto. Albeit looking like a combination of amateur recordings taken from YouTube for some parts, not a single scene from the dark side of the city is ever short of menacing - from a cell full of human trafficking victims to piling dismembered corpses in a storeroom. They may not be as gruesome as Quentin Tarantino's "Hostel", but viewers might cringe a little once they reach the part where a policeman is standing on his knees with a knife on his right eye.

What really strikes the reviewer about "End Of Watch" is that unlike most films of the same genre that contain merely action without substance, the film places a lot of values on each role with great detail, making each and every one of them almost relatable to anyone who watches. Whilst highlighting some of Gyllenhaal and the underrated Pena's best performances, the greatest surprise of all is actually America Ferrera, our very own "Ugly Betty" turned into an ugly cop.

Sure, the shootings and car chase may not be the most original, but the only thing the reviewer cares about is the daily foul-mouthed conversations between rowdy Taylor and family man Zavala. Because it is funny like that.

Cinema Online, 31 December 2012