Black and Blue

Rookie to the New Orleans Police Department, Alicia West (Naomie Harris) is discovered as an accidental witness to a brutal killing at the hands of a vice cop Terry Malone (Frank Grillo). Now sought by every dirty cop and criminal in the lower wards she’ll have to rely on her wits and the least likely help, shop clerk Milo Jackson (Tyrese Gibson), to survive the night and upload her body cam to the evidence database. Directed by Deon Taylor and Written by Peter Dowling, this conventional and tropey/Fugitive-esque cop drama operates with most systems go and by all means would receive the “it’s fine but not great” vote were it not for a tanked ending. For a film with the central theme of a female African American police officer struggling in her own community to effectively be “saved” or “redeemed” in the manner which she is, is disingenuous, disappointing, and frankly insulting. Meanwhile, Harris and Gibson do a fine job holding their own and selling the drama for the balance of the film, shoulder shrugs to the rest of the cast. You could do a lot worse, but a missed opportunity to do better is the sad reality here. Black and Blue is rated R.