movie review hollywood homicide

Hollywood Homicide

The most popular occupations in movies about Hollywood are cops, crooks, hookers, psychics and actors, and to this list we must add the people they are all terrified of, real estate brokers. “Hollywood Homicide” covers these bases with a murderer, a cop who is a real-estate agent, a cop who wants to be an actor, and a psychic who can visualize that the murderer will be in an SUV on Rodeo Drive in half an hour. There are also two hookers. One is named Ferre Salesclerk, which can hardly be improved upon. The other is Wanda, an undercover cop in drag. There is room for improvement there.

The movie stars Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett as the two cops, named Joe Gavilan and K.C. Calden, who are detectives assigned to Hollywood. Galivan is so preoccupied with his real estate business that he tries to sell a house to the owner of a club where four rappers have just been killed, and later negotiates the purchase price during a police chase. Calden has decided he wants to be an actor, and makes Galivan run lines for him from “ A Streetcar Named Desire .” Galivan is not impressed: “Who wrote this stuff?” The movie was directed by Ron Shelton , who co-wrote with Robert Souza . Shelton also made “ Bull Durham ” and “ White Men Can't Jump ” and specializes in funny dialogue for guy characters who would rather talk than do just about anything else. One of the pleasures of “Hollywood Homicide” is that it’s more interested in its two goofy cops than in the murder plot; their dialogue redeems otherwise standard scenes. It’s kind of a double act, between a man who has seen everything and a man who seen too much. Consider a scene where K.C. commandeers a vehicle containing a mother and her two small children. He needs it to chase a bad guy. “We’re gonna die!” whines one of the kids. “Yes,” agrees K.C., who moonlights as a yoga instructor, “we are all going to die someday, but…” His philosophical observations are cut short by a crash.

The movie opens with a hit on a rap group in a music club. Four people are dead when Joe and K.C. turn up to investigate. Joe immediately sends out for food. K.C. tells the club owner he is an actor. Their investigation is hampered by an inconvenient development: They are under investigation by Benne Macko ( Bruce Greenwood ), the Internal Affairs guy who hates Joe, and who reminds us once again that movie villains usually have a hard C or K in their names.

Joe is suspected of “mingling funds,” which is to say, he confuses his personal debts and the debts of his real estate business. He has been seen with Ferre Salesclerk ( Lolita Davidovich ), who is a known hooker. No wonder; you do not get to be an unknown hooker by being chauffeured around town in your own stretch limousine. Internal Affairs thinks he is fooling around with Salesclerk, but he isn’t; he’s fooling around with Ruby the psychic ( Lena Olin ). She is yet another in the baffling legion of Los Angeles women who believe it is fun to make love on a blanket on the hardwood floor of an empty house while surrounded by a lot of candles.

At Harrison Ford’s age, this qualifies as a dangerous stunt. But Ford just gets better, more distilled, more laconic and more gruffly likeable, year after year. It is hard to catch him doing anything at all while he’s acting, and yet whatever it is he isn’t doing, it works. You don’t feel he’s going for laughs when he tries to sell the club owner a house, while the two of them are standing in fresh pools of blood, metaphorically speaking; you feel he desperately needs to unload the house.

Hartnett makes an able partner for Ford, trading deadpan dialogue and telling everyone he’s really an actor. He’s given one of Shelton’s nicest little scenes, when he goes to the morgue and looks at the dead bodies of the murder victims (he hates looking at dead bodies), and then notices some other dead bodies that have just arrived at the morgue, checks their shoe sizes, and says, “Hey … those guys shot these guys.” There is a chase and a half at the end of the end of the movie, a lot of it near the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood and Highland. That gives the movie a chance to interrupt Robert Wagner as he’s leaving his handprints in front of Graumann’s Chinese Theatre, and indeed the movie is filled with cameos and walk-bys, including Frank Sinatra Jr. as a show-biz lawyer, Martin Landau very funny as a fading producer who needs to unload his mansion, Lou Diamond Phillips as Wanda the cop in drag, Gladys Knight, Dwight Yoakam , Isaiah Washington , Master P, Kurupt, Eric Idle , Dr. Dre and just plain Dre.

Much of the closing excitement depends on the Fallacy of the Climbing Killer, that dependable chase cliche in which the killer climbs to a high place, from which he cannot escape unless he can fly. “Hollywood Homicide” uses this as an excuse to show police helicopters and TV news helicopters crowding each other out of the skies. It’s a skillful chase, well done, but the dialogue is the reason to see the movie. This may be the most exciting film ever made about real estate.

Note. I am aware that “realtor” is a trademark and is always supposed to be used with a capital “R.” But I refuse to go along. Realtors can complain all they want, but why should they get an upper-case R just because they say so? Would we capitalize Philosopher, Exterminator, Proctologist or Critic?

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

• Keith David as Lieutenant Fuqua
• Martin Landau as Jerry Duran
• Bruce Greenwood as Benne MacKo
• Harrison Ford as Joe Gavilan
• Lolita Davidovich as Ferre Salesclerk
• Jamison Jones as Sgt. Bobby Riley
• Josh Hartnett as K.C. Calden
• Lena Olin as Ruby
• Robert Souza
• Ron Shelton

Leave a comment

Now playing.

Venom: The Last Dance

Woman of the Hour

Exhibiting Forgiveness

The Shadow Strays

Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara

Gracie & Pedro: Pets to the Rescue

Latest articles.

A Master of Subtle Function: Cinematographer Dick Pope (1947-2024)

30 Years of “Hoop Dreams”: Steve James on Roger Ebert, Oscar Snubs, and Documentary Filmmaking

CIFF 2024: Cloud, Grafted, Parvulos

CIFF 2024: The Return of the Projectionist, Between Goodbyes, The Brink of Dreams

The best movie reviews, in your inbox.

Log in or sign up for Rotten Tomatoes

Trouble logging in?

By continuing, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands .

By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands .

By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes.

Email not verified

Let's keep in touch.

Sign up for the Rotten Tomatoes newsletter to get weekly updates on:

• Upcoming Movies and TV shows
• Rotten Tomatoes Podcast
• Media News + More

By clicking "Sign Me Up," you are agreeing to receive occasional emails and communications from Fandango Media (Fandango, Vudu, and Rotten Tomatoes) and consenting to Fandango's Privacy Policy and Terms and Policies . Please allow 10 business days for your account to reflect your preferences.

OK, got it!

• About Rotten Tomatoes®
• Login/signup

Movies in theaters

• Opening This Week
• Top Box Office
• Coming Soon to Theaters
• Certified Fresh Movies

Movies at Home

• Fandango at Home
• Prime Video
• Most Popular Streaming Movies
• What to Watch New

Certified fresh picks

• 85% Smile 2 Link to Smile 2
• 99% Anora Link to Anora
• 79% We Live in Time Link to We Live in Time

New TV Tonight

• 88% What We Do in the Shadows: Season 6
• 80% Poppa's House: Season 1
• 80% Territory: Season 1
• -- Before: Season 1
• -- Hellbound: Season 2
• -- The Equalizer: Season 5
• -- Breath of Fire: Season 1
• -- Beauty in Black: Season 1
• 67% Like a Dragon: Yakuza: Season 1

Most Popular TV on RT

• 83% Agatha All Along: Season 1
• 94% The Penguin: Season 1
• 79% Disclaimer: Season 1
• 92% Rivals: Season 1
• 82% Hysteria!: Season 1
• 100% The Lincoln Lawyer: Season 3
• 100% From: Season 3
• 85% Grotesquerie: Season 1
• 88% Escape at Dannemora: Season 1
• 79% Teacup: Season 1
• Best TV Shows
• Most Popular TV

Certified fresh pick

• 96% Shrinking: Season 2 Link to Shrinking: Season 2
• All-Time Lists
• Binge Guide
• Comics on TV
• Five Favorite Films
• Video Interviews
• Weekend Box Office
• Weekly Ketchup
• What to Watch

All Spider-Man Movies Ranked (Including Venom and Morbius )

All Tom Hardy Movies Ranked

What to Watch: In Theaters and On Streaming

Awards Tour

Venom: The Last Dance First Reviews: Silly, Surprisingly Emotional, and Strictly for Fans

Kingsley Ben-Adir Talks Extensive Prep to Play Bob Marley on the Awards Tour Podcast

• Trending on RT
• Verified Hot Movies
• TV Premiere Dates
• Gladiator II First Reactions
• Halloween Programming Guide

Hollywood Homicide Reviews

The plot makes little sense, and it all degenerates into the inevitable car chase in the final act, but there's enough wit in the script and chemistry between the likeable leads to cover the loose ends.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Feb 8, 2024

Anyway, not every scene needs an interpretation, and Hollywood Homicide is solidly entertaining on a scene-by-scene basis, despite all its faults.

Full Review | Jul 1, 2020



If there is one downstroke, it's too many sub-plots crammed into 120 minutes. While each is entertaining in its own right, [Ron] Shelton and [Robert] Souza should have held back a little.

Full Review | Nov 13, 2019

It's truly sad to see Ford reduced to this.

Full Review | Feb 1, 2018

Despite a talented cast, this movie doesn't work.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Dec 24, 2010

Full Review | Original Score: 2/4 | Dec 27, 2007

How could so many talented people make such a tepid, superfluous movie? It's easy: that's what happens when you listen to your inner marketer instead of your muse.

Full Review | Nov 1, 2007

This is going to go down as one of the lesser films in the portfolios of Shelton, Ford, and most everyone else involved.

Full Review | Original Score: C- | Sep 17, 2007

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Dec 30, 2006

Full Review | Original Score: 0.5/5 | Dec 6, 2005

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Sep 30, 2005

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Jul 16, 2005

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 5, 2005

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Mar 5, 2005

My guess is Shelton and fellow writer Robert Souza borrowed an idea from TV's improvisational 'Whose Line Is It Anyway?'

Full Review | Original Score: D | Oct 14, 2004

Full Review | Original Score: 2/10 | Oct 7, 2004

Harrison Ford ainda sabe fazer graça. Pena que o diretor Ron Shelton e o roteiro não saibam.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Feb 13, 2004

Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett, are given enough character quirks to made this trip in cliché-ville more enjoyable than most.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/4 | Feb 13, 2004

... in this lacklustre affair, even (Harrison) Ford manages to put in his most wooden performance on record ...

Full Review | Original Score: 2/10 | Oct 28, 2003

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Sep 23, 2003

Hollywood Homicide Review

29 Aug 2003

116 minutes

Hollywood Homicide

American critics and box office analysts hailed the poor US performance of Ron Shelton's cop comedy-drama as the death knell for the action man career of Harrison Ford. Yet the accent on action misses the point. Adept at creating male characters who feel compelled to reveal themselves through talk - see Bull Durham or Tin Cup - Shelton uses the buddy cop genre, for the most part, to explore two goofy characters at the expense of huge explosions and obvious one-liners. And if that means the pacing goes awry and the storytelling meanders, surely that's preferable to the same old, same old.

Recalling his quirky character turns in American Graffiti, The Conversation and Apocalypse Now, Ford is at his grizzled, laconic best, transcending the standard world-weary cop stereotype. Watch him flip out in an attempt to commandeer a car, or read Blanche DuBois' lines from A Streetcar Named Desire opposite Hartnett doing Stanley, and you'll be reminded of his genius for deadpan comedy.

As likable as ever, Hartnett gives as good as he gets as an actor trapped inside a cop's persona, teaching yoga to bangable babes and giving his sage advice mid-car chase. Where the movie falls down is in the cop conventions that surround the central pairing.

The plot through-line of Gavilan and Calden investigating the death of some rappers is a disappointing detective story, peppered with forgettable villains and a contrived subplot involving an Internal Affairs investigation.

The final, extended chase is annoyingly conventional (despite the sight of Ford on a kid's bicycle) compared to the nice character beats and originality built up in the first half. Which is a shame, as Ford and Hartnett deserved a better finale to their promising pairing.

Related Articles

Movies | 18 09 2017

Movies | 11 05 2016

Movies | 15 06 2003

Notice: All forms on this website are temporarily down for maintenance. You will not be able to complete a form to request information or a resource. We apologize for any inconvenience and will reactivate the forms as soon as possible.

• DVD & Streaming

Hollywood Homicide

Content caution.

In Theaters

• Harrison Ford as Joe Gavilan; Josh Hartnett as K.C. Calden; Lena Olin as Ruby; Bruce Greenwood as Bennie Macko; Isaiah Washington as Sartain; Lolita Davidovich as Cleo; Dwight Yoakam as Wasley; Martin Landau as Jerry; Gladys Knight as Olivia Robidoux; Keith David as Leon; Lou Diamond Phillips as Wanda; also featuring rappers Master P., Kurupt and Outkast’s Andre Benjamin

Home Release Date

• Ron Shelton

Distributor

Positive Elements   |   Spiritual Elements   |   Sexual & Romantic Content   |   Violent Content   |   Crude or Profane Language   |   Drug & Alcohol Content   |   Other Noteworthy Elements   | Conclusion

Movie Review

This strategically cast action/comedy teams crusty, hot-tempered LAPD veteran and part-time real estate agent Joe Gavilan (Harrison Ford) with K.C. Calden (Josh Hartnett), a hunky young rookie and wannabe actor committed to avenging the death of his lawman father. They wind up investigating a music-industry whacking that claimed the lives of four budding rappers. As they chase down clues, follow leads and pump informants, the mismatched partners must confront hip-hop gangstaz and dirty cops on the streets of Hollywood.

positive elements: Police put themselves in harm’s way to stop the bad guys. K.C. jumps on a wild gunman, leaps into action against car thieves and chases after fleeing criminals. Joe doggedly pursues and battles with Sartain, the rap mogul who’ll stop at nothing to keep his roster of artists loyal.

spiritual content: K.C. practices Hinduism and considers himself better off for being spiritually enlightened. He teaches meditation and yoga, wants to achieve his “bliss,” and lectures panicked children on the merits of reincarnation. A love interest of Joe’s is a radio psychic, who lends her services to the case. Joe mocks her attempts to “get centered” and treats her craft as hooey until one of her predictions yields fruit, making him a believer.

sexual content: Both K.C. and Joe are popular with the ladies. The young yoga teacher admits that he got into it for the sex, which seems to involve a different woman every night. K.C. is waking up with a naked blond one minute and making out with a naked brunette in a hot tub the next (this eager girl doesn’t even care that he doesn’t remember her name). His locker is filled with books about tantric sex. And he asks his aging police partner how long it’s been since he’s gotten any action. Joe, a three-time divorcée, is sleeping with Ruby, the radio psychic who’s coming off a relationship with Joe’s arch-rival on the force. She blindfolds him and they undress each other as foreplay. On a separate occasion, he is passionate toward her before the cameras show them together the next morning. Joe is accused of a relationship with a Hollywood madam. He picks up a male undercover cop who’s posing as a hooker. Shapely women are seen in skimpy outfits or form-fitting workout attire. Some comments are dripping with sexual innuendo. In a comic moment, Eric Idle is dragged into the police station protesting that he wasn’t soliciting sex on the street, but conducting research. Joe assumes that because K.C. wants to be an actor, he must be a homosexual (“You’re gay; I can handle that”).

violent content: A fistfight on a high roof ends with a man plummeting many stories and landing with a sickening thud in an empty trash dumpster (all leaving very little to the imagination). Wild chases include car wrecks and civilians being tossed about or forced to duck for cover during shootouts. Gunfire is exchanged on the street, in the subway, in an office building, etc. Although he shows some restraint upon cornering his father’s murderer, K.C. puts several bullets in the guy to wound and incapacitate him. Joe and K.C. get bloodied in battle. Flurries of machine-gun fire end with four dead rappers (the audience doesn’t see the actual murders, but the aftermath—in CSI fashion—as K.C. and Joe root around the crime scene). Joe punches a belligerent security guard. A criminal steals a cop’s gun and starts shooting. A man double-crosses a pair of hit men, shooting them dead before stuffing the bodies in a car and torching it.

crude or profane language: The name of Jesus Christ is abused a dozen times, with just as many misuses of God’s name (often teamed with “d–n”). There are also two f-words, more than 30 s-words, and approximately 30 other profanities or uses of crass, anatomical slang.

drug and alcohol content: Joe and K.C. down beers in a bar. At home, Joe pours himself whiskey and wine on separate occasions. Dialogue alludes to drug busts and someone doing crack.

other negative elements: A thug urinates on himself in graphic fashion. K.C. expresses a desire to kill the man who murdered his father. Both K.C. and Joe are shameless about doing “other” business on police time. These conflicts of interest involve (for Joe) visiting property, showing houses and calling clients, as well as (for K.C.) leaving a screenplay in a producer’s home and promoting himself as an actor. Joe’s lack of professional integrity finds him lying to both the buyer and seller to close a real estate deal (at least he faces consequences when the two parties confront him for his dishonesty). During an autopsy, the coroner accidentally sprays K.C. with fluid from the cadaver. Other corpses are merely charred remains.

conclusion: This film is both a love letter to and a gentle skewering of the arrogant, amoral excesses that make Hollywood what it is. Gunfire in the halls of a record label doesn’t faze one employee who stays on the phone making silly demands on behalf of a hip-hop prima donna. In another scene, a police helicopter can’t stop a fugitive from the air because so many news choppers refuse to back away and risk losing a big story to rival networks. And a young woman considers herself an accomplished actress after appearing in a Jell-O commercial. Only in L.A. If Hollywood Homicide had made more of dryly comic moments like those, the whole thing would have seemed a lot smarter. As it is, this calculated star vehicle crams in murders, chases, soft-core sexuality, corrupt police officers, ridiculous shootouts and other tired clichés from the buddy-cop genre. Besides which, no one east of San Bernardino will be able to identify with these mismatched, moonlighting partners. At least the makers of Beverly Hills Cop had the sense to import an outsider into the mix, letting Detroit cop Eddie Murphy react to So. Cal. absurdities on behalf of the average American. This movie isn’t that savvy. Beyond its artistic failings, Hollywood Homicide is loaded with offensive language, takes joy in violence, and asks families to cheer studs Ford and Hartnett as they “score” more often than the Anaheim Angels.

Positive Elements

Spiritual elements, sexual & romantic content, violent content, crude or profane language, drug & alcohol content, other noteworthy elements.

Bob Smithouser

Latest reviews.

Venom: The Last Dance

She’s All That

Weekly Reviews Straight to your Inbox!

Want to stay Plugged In?

Our weekly newsletter will keep you in the loop on the biggest things happening in entertainment and technology. Sign up today, and we’ll send you a chapter from the new Plugged In book, Becoming a Screen-Savvy Family , that focuses on how to implement a “screentime reset” in your family!

• Cast & crew
• User reviews

Hollywood Homicide

Two LAPD detectives who moonlight in other fields investigate the murder of an up-and-coming rap group. Two LAPD detectives who moonlight in other fields investigate the murder of an up-and-coming rap group. Two LAPD detectives who moonlight in other fields investigate the murder of an up-and-coming rap group.

• Ron Shelton
• Robert Souza
• Harrison Ford
• Josh Hartnett
• Isaiah Washington
• 265 User reviews
• 117 Critic reviews
• 47 Metascore

Top cast 99+

• Sgt. Joe Gavilan

• Det. K.C. Calden

• Antoine Sartain

• Lt. Bennie Macko

• Cleo Ricard

• Julius Armas

• Olivia Robidoux

• I.A. Detective Jackson

• I.A. Detective Zino

• Danny Broome

• (as Andre Benjamin)

• Commander Preston

• Coroner Chung

• Leroy Wasley
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

More like this

Did you know

• Trivia Reportedly, Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett did not get along during production, and neither were very warm with each other when they went out to go promote the movie. Hartnett later revealed in an interview that he and Ford got along better by the end of filming, but said that there were times they would end up just sitting in the car when they were supposed to be doing a scene and neither of them would say anything for like an hour.
• Goofs When the handcuffed prisoner steals a gun and shoots up the parking lot, KC and Gavilan agree that he fired 15 shots; he actually fired 18, which, according to them, is more than the gun holds.

Joe Gavilan : Don't call me sir. I work for a living.

• Crazy credits During the end credits, Joe and K.C. arrive at the location of their new crime scene investigation.
• Connections Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Hollywood Homicide/2 Fast 2 Furious/Love the Hard Way (2003)
• Soundtracks I Love Cali (In the Summertime) The Hollywood Version Written by Roscoe and Fingazz Produced by Laylaw and D-Maq (as D-Maq) Performed by Roscoe Roscoe appears courtesy of Priority/Capitol Records

User reviews 265

• george.schmidt
• Jun 15, 2003
• June 13, 2003 (United States)
• United States
• Columbia Tristar (France)
• Parker Center - 150 North Los Angeles Street, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA
• Revolution Studios
• Pitt-Shelton Productions
• The Pitt Group
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $75,000,000 (estimated)
• $30,940,691
• $11,112,632
• $51,142,659

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 56 minutes
• Dolby Digital

Related news

Contribute to this page.

• See more gaps
• Learn more about contributing

More to explore

Recently viewed.

Hollywood Homicide Review

Your changes have been saved

Email is sent

Email has already been sent

Please verify your email address.

You’ve reached your account maximum for followed topics.

Demi Moore's Body-Horror Hit The Substance Hits Streaming in Time for Halloween

Venom 3 finally reveals who is playing the marvel supervillain, knull, predator: badlands brings franchise back to theaters in 2025.

The "buddy cop" genre has certainly been in a slump lately. Box-office bombs such as last year's "Showtime" and "I Spy" (O.K. it's a "buddy spy" movie, but it's close enough) as well as this year's stinker "National Security" have proven this point. Hollywood Homicide is the Sammy Sosa home-run (cork optional) that lifts this genre out of its slump because it provides some great humor, action and what the previous "buddy cop" movies before it have lacked: great chemistry between the lead actors.

The movie starts out by contrasting the two cops, yet showing how they're the same in that they both want more out of life than just being a cop. We first see Joe Gavilan (Harrison Ford) waiting outside of a house he is trying to sell in his moonlighting gig as a real estate broker. The first time we see K.C. Calden, he's teaching a tai-chi class and we later find out that he is thinking of quitting the force to become, take a wild guess here, an actor. But when a hot new rap group is killed in a nightclub, Gavilan and Calden must go back to their day jobs to find the killers.

Ford and Hartnett make a great duo. Of course, because their ages are so far apart, their lives will be vastly different. Gavilan is a hard-nosed, dead-aim veteran, Calden gets queesy around dead bodies and would have trouble shooting the Pacific Ocean. Gavilan moonlights as a real estate broker, Calden as a tai-chi instructor. But unlike in other movies, where the older cop resents the gumshoe younger partner causing them both to clash, Ford and Hartnett gel rather well, each respecting each other although their lives are far more different. "Showtime", "I Spy" and "National Security" tried to spin the "buddy cop" movie so that they weren't buddies, being forced to work with each other, but, surely enough, being buddies in the end. They put most of the conflict between the buddies, and not as much in the crime they're supposed to solve. This just doesn't work, or they haven't found a way to make it work yet, and I'm glad that they eliminated the conflict between the cops and put it back to being between the cops and criminals.

There isn't much to the musician-laden supporting performances, but they're not horrible. Rappers Master P and Kurupt are O.K. as a nightclub owner and a murder suspect and Dwight Yoakam is below-average as a shady ex-cop. Isaiah Washington is pretty good as an ex-thug music mogul, a possible reference to former Death Row Records CEO Suge Knight, but the other performances are either so small or so average they aren't worth mentioning.

The screenplay, co-written by director Ron Shelton and Robert Souza, is one of the movie's best assets. The script is filled with great dialogue, one-liners, character development and subplots. It is very nicely crafted, especially when they toy with the idea, at the very end, of a conventional "Hollywood ending" only to turn it around again. The fact that the script had Calden as a cop who wants to be an actor kind of bugged me, since they did it already, and quite badly, with Eddie Murphy's character in "Showtime", but they still pulled it off much better.

Director Ron Shelton, who has had a career that consisted almost entirely of sports movies ("Bull Durham," "White Men Can't Jump"), is starting to delve into the crime genre, and he's doing it very nicely. Shelton has had real-life experience in sports as a minor-league baseball player, which makes his sports movies more authentic. But Shelton is smart, because now that he has moved into crime, he is surrounding himself with people who know have experience in this area. Shelton directed this year's phenomenal "Dark Blue" from a screenplay by David Ayer, who grew up in the crime-riddled streets of South Central L.A. For this movie, Shelton co-wrote the script with Souza, who was an L.A.P.D. detective for 25 years, a fact which adds extensive credibility to the L.A. scene that is created in this movie. Shelton's direction is wonderful, handling the action scenes and his lead actors wonderfully, with a deft style behind the camera.

Hollywood Homicide is a great "buddy cop" movie that I hope will revitalize the genre back to the good ol' days of "Beverly Hills Cop" and "Lethal Weapon." It has everything that you could want in a summer movie, and in this the Summer of Sequels, it's nice to see this come from a movie that doesn't have the number 2 in the title.

• Movie and TV Reviews
• Hollywood Homicide (2003)

🙌 Awesome, you're subscribed!

Thanks for subscribing! Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon!

Get us in your inbox

Sign up to our newsletter for the latest and greatest from your city and beyond

By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions.

Awesome, you're subscribed!

The best things in life are free.

Sign up for our email to enjoy your city without spending a thing (as well as some options when you’re feeling flush).

Déjà vu! We already have this email. Try another?

Love the mag?

Our newsletter hand-delivers the best bits to your inbox. Sign up to unlock our digital magazines and also receive the latest news, events, offers and partner promotions.

• Things to Do
• Food & Drink
• Arts & Culture
• Time Out Market
• Los Angeles

Hollywood Homicide

Time out says, release details.

• Duration: 116 mins

Cast and crew

• Director: Ron Shelton
• Screenwriter: Robert Souza, Ron Shelton
• Harrison Ford
• Josh Hartnett
• Bruce Greenwood
• Isaiah Washington
• Lolita Davidovich
• Keith David
• Gladys Knight
• Lou Diamond Phillips
• Smokey Robinson

Been there, done that? Think again, my friend.

Discover Time Out original video

• Press office
• Investor relations
• Work for Time Out
• Editorial guidelines
• Privacy notice
• Do not sell my information
• Cookie policy
• Accessibility statement
• Terms of use
• Modern slavery statement
• Manage cookies
• Advertising

Time Out Worldwide

• All Time Out Locations
• North America
• South America
• South Pacific

Hollywood Homicide (2003)

Stream & Watch Hollywood Homicide

Cast & Crew

Trailers & clips.

Movie Details

Featured news.

Similar Movies

Movie Reviews

Follow Moviefone

Latest trailers.

Letterboxd — Your life in film

Forgotten username or password ?

• Start a new list…
• Add all films to a list…
• Add all films to watchlist

Add to your films…

Press Tab to complete, Enter to create

A moderator has locked this field.

Add to lists

Where to watch

Hollywood homicide.

Directed by Ron Shelton

They're two cops with one shot at solving a murder... and surviving each other.

Joe Gavilan and his new partner K. C. Calden, are detectives on the beat in Tinseltown. Neither one of them really wants to be a cop, Gavilan moonlights as a real estate broker, and Calden is an aspiring actor moonlighting as a yoga instructor. When the two are assigned a big case they must work out whether they want to solve the case or follow their hearts.

Harrison Ford Josh Hartnett Lena Olin Bruce Greenwood Isaiah Washington Lolita Davidovich Keith David Dwight Yoakam Martin Landau Lou Diamond Phillips Gladys Knight James MacDonald Alan Dale Regina Russell Banali Meredith Scott Lynn Tom Todoroff Kurupt André 3000 Clyde Kusatsu Eric Idle Frank Sinatra Jr. Robert Wagner Johnny Grant Smokey Robinson Shawn Woods Anthony Mackie Gregg Daniel Darrell Foster Christopher Wiehl Show All… Dennis Burkley Blake Gibbons Ernest Harden Jr. Eloy Casados Brianna Brown Paul Butcher Master P Jennette McCurdy Jason Matthew Smith Arina Gasanova Magic Krazy T-Bo Choppa

Director Director

Ron Shelton

Producers Producers

Lou Pitt Ron Shelton Robert Souza Allegra Clegg Scott Bernstein

Writers Writers

Ron Shelton Robert Souza

Casting Casting

Ed Johnston Robyn Owen Silvestri

Editor Editor

Paul Seydor

Cinematography Cinematography

Barry Peterson

Assistant Directors Asst. Directors

Eric Fox Hays Hope Garrison

Executive Producers Exec. Producers

Joe Roth David V. Lester

Lighting Lighting

Camera operators camera operators.

Kirk R. Gardner Maurice K. McGuire

Production Design Production Design

James D. Bissell

Art Direction Art Direction

Christa Munro

Set Decoration Set Decoration

William F. Matthews Lorrie Campbell Julia K. Levine Jan Pascale

Special Effects Special Effects

Visual effects visual effects.

Carey Villegas David Taritero

Stunts Stunts

Jeffrey J. Dashnaw Michael Runyard Danny Wynands Cassandra McCormick Joe Bucaro III Sandy Berumen Tim Trella Steve Kelso Tim Rigby Tommy J. Huff Donna Evans Tracy Keehn-Dashnaw Chuck Picerni Jr. Charlie Picerni Freddie Hice Doug Coleman Gary McLarty Walter Scott Gary J. Wayton Annie Ellis

Composer Composer

Alex Wurman

Sound Sound

Kirk Francis Michael Minkler Myron Nettinga Bruce Fortune Howard Neiman Michael Payne Kim Secrist Steve Nelson Elliott Koretz Brian Best Steve Mann Becky Sullivan Lisa O'Donoghue Marc Meyer Sean Rowe Laura Macias Shawn Kennelly

Costume Design Costume Design

Bernie Pollack

Makeup Makeup

Dennis Liddiard Kimberly Felix Michael Laudati Mindy Hall

Hairstyling Hairstyling

Kenneth Walker JoAnn Stafford-Chaney Michael Kriston

Revolution Studios Columbia Pictures

Releases by Date

09 jun 2003, 29 aug 2003, 11 sep 2003, 12 sep 2003, 25 sep 2003, 26 sep 2003, 01 oct 2003, 24 oct 2003, 12 dec 2003, 04 sep 2003, 05 sep 2003, 24 jan 2004, releases by country.

• Digital 12+
• Theatrical TP
• Theatrical 12
• Theatrical 13
• Theatrical 16
• Digital R15+
• Theatrical 15

South Korea

Switzerland.

• Theatrical 12A
• Theatrical PG-13

116 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by Erika ★★ 5

A few things about this movie:

•Harrison Ford gets mad over a burger •Harrison Ford has two sex scenes in this movie •André 3000 cameos for literally no reason •There's a subplot about Harrison Ford trying to sell a rich white guys house •The score sounds like something right out of a bad 80s movie •This movie is filled with bad stereotypes •Josh Hartnett takes a guys car while his family is still in it •Harrison Ford growls at a woman while stealing her pink bicycle •Harrison Ford yells at people while riding that pink bicycle •And the worst part of this entire movie is when a billboard for xXx shows up for a few seconds.

Review by Patrick Willems ★½ 4

Maybe this movie should be more about Hollywood or homicides and less about Harrison Ford's side career as a real estate broker.

Review by Scar ★★½ 1

the most 2003 film ever made (derogatory)

Review by Jordon ★★½

Harrison Ford fucks in Aviators, while eating a donut .

Review by megan ★½

i wish i was harrison ford

Review by Jesse Snoddon ★★★

"I don't think I want to be a cop anymore"

Sgt. Joe Gavilan (Harrison Ford) and Detective K.C. Calden (Josh Hartnett) catch a homicide case involving murdered musicians. The case is a lot harder to solve than it should be because of how distracted they both are by their side hustles as a realtor and an aspiring actor yoga instructor respectively. 

The pacing is a mess. There's way too much going on and too many arcs for the runtime and the storytelling is pretty unfocused. Simply put, Hollywood Homicide has a lot of flaws. And yet somehow, maybe because of and not in spite of the fact that it's a mess...I kind of like it. Not all the humour works…

Review by King #adoptdontshop ★★½

Buddy-cop comedy Hollywood Homicide is a tone confused action drama for Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett. Though these actors have smooth, cleansed chemistry and performed with best intentions it wasn’t really sharpened to good use. Additionally, the script is clichéd, the jokes are shallow, nauseating sex scenes, and there’s too many redundant subplots I ended up indifferent about them instead (Ford really committed to that realtor bit eh?) Casual conversations were forced to be funny too, that as much as you wanna be pleased, this Ron Shelton work was never arresting.

However, Hartnett fits his characterization really well and I commend how all major characters are linked. The lengthy climax car chase scene also made up for the lackluster plotline and overall direction. Well, almost.

Review by Colin the dude ★★ 6

If I were to pull you aside and whisper in your ear, "That forgettable Harrison Ford/Josh Hartnett buddy cop movie costarred Bruce Greenwood, Isaiah Washington, Keith David, Lena Olin, Dwight Yoakam, Martin Landau, Andre 3000, Lolita Davidovich, Gladys Knight, Master P, Lou Diamond Phillips, Frank Sinatra Jr., Anthony Mackie, Robert Wagner, Smokey Robinson, and Eric Idle," would you believe me?

Review by ItsLV ★★★ 2

Shit movies from the early 2000's just hit a bit different to the garbage of today.

What a mess of a film... That won me over haha. It's worth it for cranky ol Harrison Ford alone... The sex scene while wearing sunglasses and eating a donut; Along with screaming at a lady for her bike... Amazing.

Review by Jordan Beaumont Anderson ★½

Released 20 years ago but may as well have been carved into a fucking cave wall.

Nearly indecipherable topical references, full-blown gay/trans/yoga-panic, deeply resentful of women, amused by civil rights violations, multiple real estate negotiations, and a lengthy shot of Lena Olin struggling to pull off Harrison Ford's khakis.

Real nightmare material.

Review by rachel ★★★½

need josh hartnett to be my yoga instructor

Review by ItsLV ★★★ 3

Yes I watched it again.

Fuck you very much! - Harrison Ford.

Similar Films

Select your preferred backdrop

Select your preferred poster, upgrade to remove ads.

Letterboxd is an independent service created by a small team, and we rely mostly on the support of our members to maintain our site and apps. Please consider upgrading to a Pro account —for less than a couple bucks a month, you’ll get cool additional features like all-time and annual stats pages ( example ), the ability to select (and filter by) your favorite streaming services, and no ads!

Common Sense Media

Movie & TV reviews for parents

• For Parents
• For Educators
• Our Work and Impact

Or browse by category:

• Movie Reviews
• Best Movie Lists
• Best Movies on Netflix, Disney+, and More

Common Sense Selections for Movies

50 Modern Movies All Kids Should Watch Before They're 12

• Best TV Lists
• Best TV Shows on Netflix, Disney+, and More
• Common Sense Selections for TV
• Video Reviews of TV Shows

Best Kids' Shows on Disney+

Best Kids' TV Shows on Netflix

• Book Reviews
• Best Book Lists
• Common Sense Selections for Books

8 Tips for Getting Kids Hooked on Books

50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They're 12

• Game Reviews
• Best Game Lists

Common Sense Selections for Games

• Video Reviews of Games

Nintendo Switch Games for Family Fun

• Podcast Reviews
• Best Podcast Lists

Common Sense Selections for Podcasts

Parents' Guide to Podcasts

• App Reviews
• Best App Lists

Social Networking for Teens

Gun-Free Action Game Apps

Reviews for AI Apps and Tools

• YouTube Channel Reviews
• YouTube Kids Channels by Topic

Parents' Ultimate Guide to YouTube Kids

YouTube Kids Channels for Gamers

• Preschoolers (2-4)
• Little Kids (5-7)
• Big Kids (8-9)
• Pre-Teens (10-12)
• Teens (13+)
• Screen Time
• Social Media
• Online Safety
• Identity and Community

Parents' Ultimate Guide to AI Companions and Relationships

• Family Tech Planners
• Digital Skills
• All Articles
• Latino Culture
• Black Voices
• Asian Stories
• Native Narratives
• LGBTQ+ Pride
• Jewish Experiences
• Best of Diverse Representation List

Multicultural Books

YouTube Channels with Diverse Representations

Podcasts with Diverse Characters and Stories

Parents' guide to, hollywood homicide.

• Common Sense Says
• Parents Say 1 Review
• Kids Say 1 Review

Common Sense Media Review

By Nell Minow , based on child development research. How do we rate?

Despite a talented cast, this movie doesn't work.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that the movie has some strong language and some sexual references and situations. K.C. has casual sex with several women, and Joe and a lady friend have a very sensual encounter. Characters drink; Joe drinks too much. There's a lot of action violence, some graphic, including a grisly autopsy…

Why Age 15+?

Murders for hire, shooting, car chases and explosions, grisly corpses.

Characters drink, one to excess.

Some strong language.

Sexual situations and references.

Any Positive Content?

Violence & scariness.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents need to know that the movie has some strong language and some sexual references and situations. K.C. has casual sex with several women, and Joe and a lady friend have a very sensual encounter. Characters drink; Joe drinks too much. There's a lot of action violence, some graphic, including a grisly autopsy scene in the morgue. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Parent and Kid Reviews

• Parents say (1)
• Kids say (1)

Based on 1 parent review

What's the Story?

In HOLLYWOOD HOMICIDE, Joe Gavilan (Harrison Ford) is a seen-it-all cop with three ex-wives and a sideline in real estate. His financial position is so precarious that he will stop in the middle of an interrogation to pitch a deal. His partner K.C. (Josh Hartnett) literally can't shoot straight. Another thing he can't keep straight is the names of the girls in the yoga class he teaches, who are constantly either sighing over him or making passes at him. But what K.C. really wants to do is act. When a rap group is gunned down at a nightclub, Joe and K.C. have to find the killers despite constant distractions from their other careers and from a pending internal affairs investigation by Macko (Bruce Greenwood), a cop who is very eager to pin something on Joe.

Is It Any Good?

A lot of talented people tried very hard to make this movie work, but it just doesn't make it. It has an appealing premise, top starring talent, and guest appearances by quite a few music stars. There is some sharp dialogue, some sly satire about Tinseltown and a couple of gags work well. But mostly, it is a mess. Ford's loose, ego-free, and witty performance is almost worth the price of admission. And there are some shrewd takes on the city where everyone, even suspects and witnesses, has headshots or a script proposal on hand at all times.

But most of the action is muddled and most of the comedy is tired. There is an interminable chase scene near the end, the murders and bad guys are not compelling, and there are way too many coincidences. Even though the story is supposed to take place in Los Angeles, quite a large city by any measure, everyone keeps running into everyone else and it turns out that the same characters are all connected to every major event in each other's lives.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about why so many people in this movie want to change their careers.

Movie Details

• In theaters : June 13, 2003
• On DVD or streaming : March 18, 2022
• Cast : Harrison Ford , Josh Hartnett , Lou Diamond Phillips
• Director : Ron Shelton
• Inclusion Information : Asian actors
• Studio : Sony Pictures
• Genre : Action/Adventure
• Run time : 111 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG-13
• MPAA explanation : violence, sexual situations and language
• Last updated : April 16, 2024

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Suggest an Update

What to watch next.

L.A. Confidential

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

• Navigating the Unexpected: How to Handle a Car Accident While Traveling
• Facing Drug Charges? Know Your Legal Rights and the Steps to Take
• From Console to Casino: The Influence of Video Game Culture on Gambling
• Say Goodbye to Unwanted Guests: Top Tips for Year-Round Pest Prevention
• Top 5 Casino Bonuses You Can Claim in 2024 for Bigger Wins
• 6 Simple Strategies to Support a Child with Autism

Blu Tuesday: “Deadpool & Wolverine” and More

• The Top 8 Movies Starring Robert De Niro: A Cinematic Journey

Movie Review: “Hollywood Homicide”

Ford stars as Joe Gavilan, a veteran detective who has just been assigned a new partner, K.C. Calden (Hartnett), in the murder of a four-man rap group just beginning to hit it big. While on the case, the two also help one another with their own problems of personal growth; Gavilan is trying to break into the real estate business and Calden is struggling with aspirations to become an actor. The man that appears to be behind all the trouble is Antoine Sartaine (Isaiah Washington), the president of the recording company that just signed the infamous rap group. But his huge financial loss due to the death of the musical act as well as the deaths of the two gunmen hired for the job produces a confusing clutter of who’s who at the crime scenes.

As usual, director Ron Shelton creates a fun environment for his two leading men to run free in. Like Shelton’s other buddy films, you can expect a fascinating blend of humor, action and drama that drives an otherwise mediocre story to its inevitable end. Shelton definitely doesn’t rewrite the buddy film manual, but he really tries to mix it up for the audience. His best move was reintroducing the Harrison Ford we all know and love from the past, the Han Solo or Indiana Jones of the 1980s, using Ford’s dry, sarcastic humor and inserting it into a hip-hop generation he looks absolutely silly in. “Hollywood Homicide” is a decent buddy cop flick but don’t expect too much beyond that aside from the great movie theater experience of fun and popcorn.

3/5 Stars Starring: Harrison Ford, Josh Hartnett, Isaiah Washington Director: Ron Shelton

About Author

In addition to writing for Bullz-Eye.com, Jason is a proud member of the Columbus Film Critics Association (COFCA) and the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS).

Related Posts

Blu Tuesday: “The Project A Collection”

Movie Review: “The Apprentice”

Christian Movie Interviews, News and Reviews

• BROWSE TOPICS X
• Devotionals
• Newsletters

"Hollywood Homicide" - Movie Review

• Holly McClure Movie Reviewer
• Published Jun 12, 2003

Genre:   Action, Comedy

Rating:   PG-13 (for violence, sexual situations and language)

Release Date:   June 13, 2003

Actors:   Harrison Ford, Josh Hartnett, Lena Olin, Bruce Greenwood, Isaiah Washington, Lolita Davidovich, Keith David, Percy Miller, Dwight Yoakam, Martin Landau

Director:   Ron Shelton

Special Notes:   Director Ron Shelton ("Bull Durham" and "White Men Can't Jump") wrote and directed this movie.

Plot:   Two L.A. homicide detectives partner to discover who conducted a gang-style hit, murdering promising rap stars. Joe Gavilan (Ford) is the seasoned veteran who K.C. Calden (Hartnett) looks up to and admires. While the two investigate the murders, they likewise attempt to straighten out their personal lives. Gavilan struggles to sell real estate, get out of debt and have an affair with his co-worker's girlfriend. Calden secretly yearns to be an actor, even to the point of setting up an audition for Hollywood heavyweight producers to see his acting talent. Although the two are brilliant in their detective work, their personal lives create a sort of havoc that interferes with their professional lives.

Bad:   But ... I wouldn't call this a great movie. It's definitely entertaining but nothing unusual or out of the ordinary. For some reason, this movie (ultimately) didn't work for me. Maybe it's because they tried too hard to pair an older hunk with a younger one. Maybe it's the classless relationships they both have with the women in their lives. Whatever it is, I just didn't feel this movie had anything special that set it apart. Don' get me wrong, it's entertaining, fun to watch, and has great action sequences. But the problem with having two leads who are attractive, charming and men that women admire (especially Ford) is that when they get stuck with a script that has them using harsh religious profanity, spewing needless crude language and uttering stupid dialogue, it demeans not only their characters but ruins their integrity. Instead of making a memorable movie that could have stood out because of the wisdom, integrity or heart of the two men, in the end, all we get is a typical cop movie. And although the sexual situations only imply that sex has (or is) about to take place (with partial rear nudity and underwear shots) it's still "too adult" for the young teen PG-13 crowd. Even though I like Ford's gray hair and think he exudes a certain appealing charm with age, in this movie he looks old … and really tired … to the point that I was noticing his hairline (or lack thereof) in all of his close-ups and thinking that his makeup person should have tried harder.

Recently On Movie Features

Editor's Picks

Popular Today

• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Use
• Crosswalk App
• California - Do Not Sell My Personal Information
• California - CCPA Notice

The 10 Worst Movies That Are Confusing in a Bad Way, Ranked

Your changes have been saved

Email is sent

Email has already been sent

Please verify your email address.

You’ve reached your account maximum for followed topics.

No one ever sets out to make a bad movie , as even the most disappointing films were probably sparked by at least one good idea. Film is a medium that often asks for its artists to take risks, so there’s certainly something to respect when storytellers attempt to make a bold statement that has some ambiguous qualities.

Although it's true that not every film can be an all-time classic , it is very frustrating when the creative teams involved seem to not have any respect for the audiences. Leaving a theater confused is not a good experience, as it can be very irritating if the story was not laid out in an identifiable way, or if there were several glaring plot holes that collapsed the internal logic. Here are the ten worst movies that are confusing in a bad way, ranked.

10 ‘Independence Day: Resurgence’ (2016)

Directed by roland emmerich.

Independence Day: Resurgence was a highly anticipated sequel to the original 1996 classic , which is often hailed as one of the greatest science fiction disaster films of all-time. While the original film was a terrific blockbuster because of its simplicity, Independence Day: Resurgence developed a convoluted narrative about why the aliens tried to invade Earth the second time, and how it became part of an intergalactic conflict.

There was seemingly no point in attempting to turn the Independence Day franchise into Star Trek , as the universe was far less complicated, and did not need as many exterior characters. This confusion was amplified by the lack of Will Smith , whose character was killed off in an off-screen incident that is explained in the most haphazard way possible. Independence Day: Resurgence seemed to have no idea why anyone liked the first film at all.

• Independence Day: Resurgence

Watch on Max

9 ‘Star Trek V: The Final Frontier’ (1989)

Directed by william shatner.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier isn’t just the worst Star Trek movie , but one of the single most embarrassing directorial debuts of all-time. The original series Star Trek star Leonard Nimoy has found great success in directing both Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home , both of which were greeted with positive reviews and box office success. However, the future of the franchise became much dicier when William Shatner was given the reins to direct Star Trek: The Final Frontier .

The fifth installment of the Star Trek series doesn’t even really feel like a science fiction movie , as there’s a high amount of slapstick comedy and an attempt at developing religious commentary that simply doesn’t work. It’s rare to see a franchise fumble a string of success and find such disappointing results.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

Captain Kirk and his crew must deal with Mr. Spock's long-lost half-brother who hijacks the Enterprise for an obsessive search for God at the center of the galaxy.

Watch on Prime Video

8 ‘Exorcist II: The Heretic’ (1977)

Directed by john boorman.

Exorcist II: Heretic is one of the worst horror sequels of all-time , as the original The Exorcist director William Friedkin was so enraged by the film that he effectively launched a campaign against it.

What’s most confusing is that Exorcist II: The Heretic seems to ignore everything that had made the first film effective ; there is no sense of grounded character dynamics, no creepy tension revolving around demonic spirits, and no real cohesion to the story. Rarely has a film seemed to be “making it up as it goes along” quite like Exorcist II: The Heretic , as it is even challenging to determine who the singular protagonist is. Director John Boorman is a talented filmmaker behind such classics as Point Blank and Deliverance , which makes it all the more confusing why he could be responsible for a sequel that completely destroyed the franchise for over a decade.

Exorcist II: The Heretic

Rent on Amazon

7 ‘Jupiter Ascending’ (2015)

Directed by lana and lilly wachowski.

Jupiter Ascending certainly cannot be faulted for its ambition , as the Wachowski sisters seemed inspired by the success of their work on The Matrix trilogy, and wanted to make another science fiction franchise with an intense mythology and extravagant world building.

The issue with Jupiter Ascending is that learning all of the characters, planets, and societal edicts becomes very confusing , as it feels like the viewer needs to do homework before they invest in any of the emotional stakes. Beyond the fact that Jupiter Ascending has some very strange ideas about monarchies and genetics, it’s very hard to follow a film that doesn’t take the time to slowly immerse the viewer into its very strange world. The baffling failure of Jupiter Ascending , coupled with the underwhelming responses to other Wachowski projects, led some film fans to wonder if the success of The Matrix had all just been a fluke.

Jupiter Ascending

6 ‘the legend of hercules’ (2014), directed by renny harlin.

The Legend of Hercules managed to mess up a timeless story from Greek mythology that did not have to end up being as confusing as it was. Renny Harlin attempted to recontextualize the rise of the hero Hercules ( Kellan Lutz ) as a story similar to Gladiator or 300 , but did a very poor job at fleshing out the interesting mythology that inspired it.

It’s frustrating that Hollywood doesn’t know how to make Greek mythology interesting when translated to the screen , as it serves as the inspiration for many of the superhero films that are popular today. Ironically, 2014 also saw the release of another disappointing Hercules film starring Dwayne Johnson that was directed by Brett Ratner , but it was nowhere near as confusing, illogical, and insulting to the viewers as what Harlin was trying to do with The Legend of Hercules .

The Legend of Hercules

Watch on Netflix

5 ‘The Gray Man’ (2022)

Directed by anthony and joe russo.

The Gray Man isn’t just one of the worst attempts at making a big budget blockbuster that Netflix has ever made, but a film so incompetent that it calls Joe and Anthony Russo s’ entire body of work into question. The Russo brothers seemed to be on a hot streak after their work with the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame .

Unfortunately, The Gray Man seemed so focused on setting up sequels that it forgot to tell a good story , as there was nothing that the film presented that the vast majority of the audience wasn’t already familiar with if they had watched spy classics like True Lies or Mission: Impossible . Ironically, it doesn’t seem like there will ever be enough enthusiasm for the Russos to answer these questions in a sequel to The Gray Man .

The Gray Man

4 ‘madame web’ (2024), directed by s.j. clarkson.

Madame Web is one of the most baffling superhero films ever made , which in some ways makes it worth watching just to see how good audiences are used to having it when it comes to comic book adaptations. Part of the issue with Madame Web is its relationship to the rest of the Marvel universe; although there are several specific references to events and characters from the Spider-Man franchise ( including Adam Scott as Ben Parker ), the film stops short of ever directly correlating to a larger universe.

Madame Web is filled with incoherent flashbacks, strange instances of overt product placement , and references to superhero characters that never actually appear on screen. While there are some bad comic book movies that can be enjoyed for ironic pleasure, Madame Web is an entirely cynical exercise that doesn’t deserve to get any attention from comic book fans who have come to expect better.

Cassandra Webb is a New York City paramedic who starts to show signs of clairvoyance. Forced to confront revelations about her past, she must protect three young women from a mysterious adversary who wants them dead.

3 ‘Plan 9 From Outer Space’ (1959)

Directed by ed wood.

Plan 9 From Outer Space is one of the many cult classics directed by Ed Wood , who is often referred to as the greatest “bad movie director” of all-time. Wood’s films were notorious for their poor production values, cheesy acting, and incoherent plots; although he was met with much disdain within his lifetime, Wood eventually became the basis of the 1994 biopic Ed Wood from director Tim Burton that starred Johnny Depp.

Plan 9 From Outer Space is so confusing that it becomes hilarious , as it incoherently tries to merge supernatural, horror, and socio-political commentary into a high stakes action thriller . Plan 9 From Outer Space essentially laid the groundwork for what a “good bad movie” could look like if viewers watched it to laugh, and certainly inspired the cult reception to films like The Room or Sharknado .

plan 9 from outer space

Watch on Mubi

2 ‘Wish Upon’ (2017)

Directed by john r. leonetti.

Wish Upon is one of the worst horror movies of the 2010s , as there is almost nothing about it that could be perceived as scary. While the notion of a “wishing box” that has unintended consequences does seem like it could be the basis of a compelling psychological thriller, Wish Upon becomes increasingly frustrating because the ways in which the “wishes” work form no cohesive logic.

Wish Upon makes for a very frustrating viewing experience , as the characters simply make illogical choices regarding the use of wishes, which will obviously come back to haunt them. The film also has a very incoherent use of technology, as the ways in which the magic affects the characters’ phones is very inconsistent. Although some of the “death” scenes are funny in an ironic sense, it is difficult to take anything that is happening in Wish Upon with any degree of seriousness.

1 ‘Hollywood Homicide’ (2003)

Directed by ron shelton.

Hollywood Homicide may be the single worst film that Harrison Ford has ever starred in , which is actually saying something considering the fact that he has appeared in such notorious flops as Firewall, The Expendables 3, Crossing Over, and Random Hearts . Ford may be known for playing many of the greatest film heroes of all-time , but Hollywood Homicide forced him to team up with Josh Hartnett for a highly forgettable buddy cop adventure mystery set in Los Angeles.

Hollywood Homicide shows no signs that it knows anything about the way that police investigations are handled , but it doesn’t have anything interesting to say about the entertainment industry either. What’s most confusing is why Ford, who is arguably one of the most beloved movie stars of all-time, would ever agree to be in a film as utterly humiliating as Hollywood Homicide.

Hollywood Homicide

KEEP READING: The 10 Most Immersive Period Movies, Ranked