To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)

Stars	User	Rating
6	terrymac	79 _81st
Very much dated by its look and the soundtrack, but ultimately not harmed by it. This is a very effective modern noire that tends to avoid obviousness, particularly once out of the opening scenes. Features an excellent highway car chase and some fine work by Dafoe. Genuinely interesting and likeable, feeling like an Italian poliziotteschi at times.
5	saucyjack	86 _79th
Hell yeah! William Friedkin plus Willem Dafoe as an insane money launderer plus Wang Chung on the soundtrack equals a great film. But in all seriousness, a really damn good actioner with quite possibly the greatest highway chase ever committed to film--Friedkin tops his French Connection chase.
4	Paxton	80 _87th
The official spoiler page for this movie is entitled: Headshot
3	eveelun	74 _55th
It certainly hasn't aged well in some respects - the fashion, music, and slang scream "1980s!", which gives it kind of a cheesy feel. But the plot is interesting and deviates from the normal cop drama enough to keep you on your toes, the car chase is pretty intense, and Dafoe is great as the very idiosyncratic villain - he's believable enough doing odd things like burning money in the nude and making out with a sexy mime. Petersen and Pankow are kind of blah, though.
3	Stain	80 _68th
William Friedkin is widely regarded as a creep. This is exactly the sort of movie you'd expect from a very talented creep: a grim, violent, cold-blooded but well-made and exciting police thriller. It seems to delight in breaking this rule and that, much like its protagonist
3	Dean Franz	80 _79th
Right from the get go it's clear this is L.A. in the 80ies, but the film has a nasty, nihilistic undercurrent that feels more like the Italian exploitation films of the 70ies. A thrilling and morally bankrupt rollercoaster into the sewers of a city more myth than metropolis.
3	Obdurate	80 _66th
Fun little slice of 80s crime thriller, though sometimes it very much feels like a product of its time (not always in a good way). But for the most part it's done quite well and isn't ever boring, crafting a story that takes some interesting turns.
3	buddhalou	80 _77th
The movie that got me to enroll in a commercial printing program at the local tech-voc school when I was 17. True story. Neither graduated nor counterfeited. Anyway, definitely one of the best crime flicks to come out of the 80's. Oh, and one of the best all time car chases in cinema. Right up there with The French Connection or Bullitt.
2	Pickpocket	7 _68th
Delightfully trashy. Dafoe is great, Petersen plays the same guy he always does and Turturro was excellent in his limited time. The soundtrack is overbearing and terrible, definitely a product of its time. I also believe everyone involved in this movie was really into cocaine.
2	pilgermann	90 _94th
Grim and grimy--gets under your skin. It seems to follow a generic buddy cop formula at first but it really rips it to bits. It's not a pleasant movie but I thought it was entertaining as heck. Some people knock the soundtrack but it's very cool and very fitting.
2	AFlickering	6 _87th
18th century cameroon... yes? your taste is in your ass!
2	Suture Self	5 _43rd
Willem Dafoe has a great face.
1	Actionberg	85 _84th
Scuzzy, depraved, brutal, thrilling...yeah, Friedkin's in my living room again. The film is unforgivably dark, and though our protagonist's emphatic disregard for any and all semblance of dignity is made clear early on, it doesn't make the downward spiral any less harrowing. I have no freaking clue how there could possibly be a car chase sequence more electrifying than the classic scene in The French Connection, and yet I witnessed it here. Another hell of a movie by a unique American director.
1	djross	65 _70th
Surprisingly involving genre movie with no good guys that seems rather uninspired to start out with, getting underway by treading the well-worn path of the cop out for vengeance after the murder of his partner, but gets better and better as it goes along. Seems to have been made with the spirit of wild abandon that is its theme. Title could be a description of the director's career.
1	CloseFriend	66 _45th
The aesthetic and the score make this feel like a sister film to Manhunter, and I love that about this movie. The cliché-ridden first half of the movie contrasts intriguingly with the unconventional second half. I just wish the resultant film had ended up something besides a right-wing panegyric for bad cops. The film questions the rectitude of these rule-breaking lawmen, but it never questions the necessity. Because of these things, the film almost feels like the Dirty Harry of the 80s.
1	Alex Watkins	4 _70th
A great portrait of the sleazier side of 1980s Los Angeles. Friedkin is one of those directors who just seems to have an intimidate understanding of public spaces, and how people operate and reside within them. His films move so freely and confidently from place to place without sacrificing complexity.
1	PeaceAnarchy	87 _87th
Imperfect, but it's a compelling and unforgiving narrative with great leads and a very strong sense of 80s style. Whatever small flaws the narrative has with cliches and contrived plot points is made up for by how incredibly well it all comes together and and how much fun to watch it all is.
1	twincinema	70 _53rd
Was not expecting to see "music by Wang Chung".
1	KasperL	80 _86th
Awesome crime drama. Entertaining and surprising.
1	KMcNeil	8 _84th
"Uncle Sam don't give a fuck about your expenses. If you want bread, fuck a baker."
1	Enthusiast	80 _82nd
An exercise in excess. Brokers in this overwrought, sunbaked conception of L.A. as imagined by people who have never even been to California, and is more resonant and memorable for it.
1	chemical404	64 _69th
It is hard to say that To Live and Die in L.A. is a good movie, but damn it's enjoyable. Not sure if it's considered a cult movie, but it has many traits to be one. Just imagine Willem Dafoe as a vicious psycho painter turned counterfeiter with homoeroticism aura about him. That alone makes this film worth watching, and there are much more good stuff going on in it. Gos, I love 80's.
1	wetwillies	92 _89th
One of the best cop thrillers ever with so much 80's style it practically hurts (And it will hurt if 80's style isn't your thing). Friedkin tops his French Connection car chase and has Wang Chung record the soundtrack. The ending is so great for what is essentially a Hollywood action movie.
1	Dunder74	7 _68th
How unconventional! To Live and Die in L.A. was a delight to watch, the film itself being of more than the average cop drama. Petersen glides through scenes, a complete badass, and Dafoe is equally as impressive as the eccentric villain. I loved the soundtrack and tone of the film. Plot is the strongest exploit here, though: Friedkin's work is definitely unique amongst a tired genre. It could be a little shorter, but this is essentially a perfect cop action drama. Awesome driving!
1	PerryStroika	65 _68th
Begins like any number of other 80's action movies but somewhere along the way the film takes a crazy and nihilistic turn, leading up to a wild apocalyptic ending. A terrific car chase, almost as good as the one in the French Connection. Great cinematorgraphy, vivid settings. Tough, remorseless, unpredictable..
1	LB94	80 _59th
A solid crime drama with only a few minor flaws. Very enjoyable and written with sheer power and acted with precision by Petersen and Dafoe. One of the 1980's best crime dramas in which Friedkin excels by breaking common crime conventions. Great stuff.
1	capodelnulla	80 _81st
friedkin, hem anlatım yöntemleri hem de anlatılar bakımından en ilgi çekici olup da en az üzerine konuşulan yönetmenlerden birisi olabilir. böylesi ucuz bir hikayeyi, izlemesi bu kadar keyifli, estetik bir iş yapabilmek ayrı bir beceri istiyor kesinlikle.
1	Chronicler	97 _65th
A great crime drama that pulls no punches and has no real 'hero', only anti-heroes. To live and Die in LA is a very nicely shot film and one that gets the 1985 feel down pat. Willem Dafoe is great as the villain and this is his first major film role and he is awesome. This film is the one that started many of the 'cop' tropes we see more in film and tv now but they were fresh and new in 1985 and still work here. Really worth checking out.
1	nobamba	75 _83rd
A fun cop movie that hits all the tropes including the '80s style. Probably could have used more dialogue. Willem Dafoe was a believable bad guy. Fav scene: car chase.
1	Ston3_FreeN7	75 _23rd
An entertaining, but not mind blowing film that has some tasty moral ambiguity but doesn't really go past the surface level much and it's absolutely a product of it's time when it comes to presentation. Which I personally didn't mind, kind of liked it even but I could see it being a turnoff. Still a good performance by William Peterson and it's super cool to see a young Dafoe and Turturro in this film. Oh and that car chase was nice.

Average Percentile 61.51% from 877 Ratings