City of Lies is a 2021 criminal thriller film about the Los Angeles Police Department’s investigations into the murders of musicians Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G. [2]. Brad Furman directs the film, which is based on Randall Sullivan’s nonfiction book LAbyrinth. Christian Contreras wrote the screenplay. The film stars Johnny Depp as retired LAPD detective Russell Poole and Forest Whitaker as journalist Jack Jackson, with Rockmond Dunbar and Neil Brown Jr. also appearing.
The film premiered in Italy on December 8, 2018, and was shown out of competition on the final day of the Noir in Festival. On January 10, 2019, it was released in limited numbers in Italy. It was initially scheduled to be published in the United States on September 7, 2018.It was removed off the calendar in August 2018 due to Global Road Entertainment’s closure. It was eventually acquired by Saban Films and released on March 19, 2021, with a PVOD release on April 9, 2021. The film received mixed reviews from critics.
Plot
(may contain spoilers!)
In 2015, Darius “Jack” Jackson, an investigative reporter for the Los Angeles Times, is assigned to cover the murder of the Notorious B.I.G. He meets with Russell Poole, a retired and discredited Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) detective. In a sequence of flashbacks, Poole exposes his hypothesis that Death Row Records CEO Suge Knight bribed corrupt LAPD cops to murder Wallace and cover it up.
Poole is assigned to investigate the shooting of off-duty black police officer Kevin Gaines by a white detective, Frank Lyga, only weeks after Wallace’s death in 1997. Poole is under pressure from senior management due to the media frenzy surrounding other recent race-related incidents in Los Angeles, specifically the beating of Rodney King and the murder trial of O. J. Simpson. During the investigation, Poole discovers that Gaines worked for Knight and was affiliated with the Bloods group. Poole’s commanding officer, Lieutenant O’Shea, rejects this notion and orders Poole to end the Gaines-Lyga shooting. Lyga is cleared, but she faces a civil suit, with the Gaines family represented by attorney Johnnie Cochran. Poole confirms the connection between Knight and Gaines with an undercover FBI agent, and he is assigned to the Robbery-Homicide Division to investigate Wallace’s murder.
Poole and his partner Fred Miller get the identities of suspects such as David Mack, another LAPD officer in Knight’s payroll, Nation of Islam member Amir Muhammad, and Blood member Wardell Fouse. Poole discovers Mack handled security for Wallace and was recently linked to a bank heist. Mack is caught, but refuses to provide any information about Wallace’s death. Poole initiates an investigation into another LAPD officer, Rafael Pérez, after discovering that he has been taking cocaine from the evidence room. Poole follows Pérez and witnesses him shoot a drug dealer, but Poole steps in and shoots Pérez in self-defense. Pérez is legally accused and implicates himself and other police in a variety of illicit actions.
Poole is assigned his own task force and prepares to testify in Lyga’s civil suit, where he plans to state on the record that Mack was implicated in Wallace’s killing and that the LAPD is covering it up, but the city settles before the trial begins. Lyga is unable to clear his name, while Poole is shunned by the LAPD.
Voletta Wallace initiates a wrongful death lawsuit against Los Angeles using the evidence championed by Poole. Mack and Amir Muhammad were designated as defendants, but were dropped shortly before the trial began when the LAPD and FBI ruled them out as suspects. Poole resigns in disgrace one month before he becomes eligible for his pension, costing him his family.
Jackson meets with Poole and Voletta, who have become friends in the decades following her son’s death. Jackson apologizes to her for previously publishing an article blaming her son with Tupac Shakur’s death, and she accepts. Voletta expresses her gratitude for Poole’s sacrifice in his endeavors to investigate the tragedy. Poole warns Jackson that Wallace’s earning potential is estimated at $1 billion, and that a civil action will bankrupt the city. Poole travels to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department one day to try to reopen his inquiry, but he has a heart attack and dies shortly after.
Out of shame, Jackson uses the facts he has gathered to create an essay on Russell Poole, dubbing him a forgotten hero. Jackson’s piece is well received; but, he soon resigns from his position, believing the system is too hypocritical to recognize worthy guys like Poole. The killings of Wallace and Tupac remain unsolved.
Cast and Crew
Directed by Brad Furman
Screenplay by Christian Contreras
Based on LAbyrinth
by Randall Sullivan
Produced by
Miriam Segal
Paul Brennan
Stuart Manashil
Starring
Johnny Depp as Russell Poole
Forest Whitaker as Jack Jackson
Toby Huss as Detective Fred Miller
Dayton Callie as Lieutenant O’Shea
Neil Brown Jr. as Rafael Perez
Louis Herthum as City Attorney Stone
Cinematography Monika Lenczewska
Edited by Leo Trombetta
Music by Chris Hajian
Production companies
Good Films
Lipsync
Romulus Entertainment
FilmNation Entertainment
Miramax
Infinitum Nihil
Distributed by Saban Films
Release dates
December 8, 2018 (Noir in Festival)
March 19, 2021 (United States)
Running time 112 minutes
