“Tough Cops of NYC living in a town across the Hudson River in Jersey…” …where the nearly deaf Sheriff (Sylvester Stallone) is essentially an agreeable pawn for their arrogant boss (Harvey Keitel). When these police officers become involved in corruption surrounding a cover-up, it draws the attention of an Internal Affairs investigator (Robert De Niro), who attempts to get the Sheriff’s assistance. Ray Liotta and Robert Patrick also appear in the film. “Cop Land” (1997) is a crime drama featuring a large group of actors; writer/director James Mangold's second movie. Because there are so many characters, using subtitles can be helpful to keep track of who’s who. It’s one of those movies that requires your full attention or you might get lost and feel annoyed. Siskel & Ebert’s review (available on Youtube) does a good job of highlighting the film's positives and negatives: Siskel was able to follow along with what was happening, so he praised it, while Ebert became irritated by the crowded production. The first time I watched it, I felt like Ebert did, but after seeing it again recently, my opinion is closer to Siskel’s. There's a Director’s Cut, released in 2008, that adds approximately 14 minutes of additional footage and clarifies the events unfolding. While this would be good to see, the original theatrical version is acceptable if you focus and keep track of everything. It follows the tradition of “On the Waterfront” and shares similarities with Bruce Willis’ “Striking Distance,” but it's less like a comic book movie, more realistic, and more complicated. Still, I think it’s better than either of those films. The film "Crash" (2004) was clearly influenced by this one. Stallone gained 40 pounds for his role and is believable as the Sheriff who's essentially trapped in a situation where he has little choice but to consider a significant change. Meanwhile, Liotta, Keitel, De Niro, and T-1000 all deliver strong performances. In terms of female characters, Annabella Sciorra plays the wife of one of the police officers (Peter Berg), a woman whom the Sheriff clearly still cares for. Cathy Moriarty appears as Uncle Ray’s unfaithful wife while Janeane Garofalo portrays the Sheriff's increasingly frustrated deputy. The film runs 1 hour and 45 minutes, and was filmed in Edgewater, New Jersey, and near the George Washington Bridge, with some scenes shot across the river in Manhattan. GRADE: B+

Source on TMDB