Rampart | Rotten Tomatoes

Rampart

R

Released Feb 10, 2012

1h 43m

Crime

Drama

List

74%

Tomatometer

149 Reviews

35%

Audience Score

10,000+ Ratings

In 1999, Officer Dave Brown (Woody Harrelson), a 24-year veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department, tends to follow his own code of rough justice. A number of years earlier, he was implicated in the death of a serial rapist. Brown's violent tendencies once again land him in hot water when a video of him beating up a suspect plays all over local TV. An assistant DA (Sigourney Weaver) pressures him to retire, but Brown edges closer and closer to a meltdown.

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Critics Consensus

Rampart sends viewers plummeting into a nihilistic hell of its protagonist's creation, yet Woody Harrelson's performance in the central role is too magnetic to dismiss.

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Tom Long

Detroit News

Where's it all go? Nowhere, really, just down a dirty, disappointing hole. Harrelson deserved better.

Rated: C

Mar 9, 2012

Full Review

Miami Herald

Rated: 2/4

Mar 2, 2012

Full Review

Moira MacDonald

Seattle Times

It's a remarkably compelling film.

Rated: 3.5/4

Mar 1, 2012

Full Review

D.M. Palmer

Vague Visages

What really distinguishes Rampart from the standard police corruption film, and prevents it from sliding into outright misanthropy, is its focus on the emotional stakes.

Nov 9, 2023

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Rampart is more of a character study than any sort of crime procedural, and it’s all the better for it.

Rated: 3/4

Jun 27, 2023

Full Review

Allen Almachar

The MacGuffin

Officer Brown is such a terrible person that he becomes almost a caricature ... by the end of the movie, nothing about him left any kind of resonance.

Rated: C+

Aug 4, 2020

Full Review

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Jeffrey P

Similar to Bad Lieutenant, an unlikable but amusing character trapped in a mess of police corruption revolving around him and his life as it swirls around the drain. Gets repetitive, whether you think he is right or wrong... and by the end you don't care.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/25/24

Full Review

Michael J

One of the worst movies I've ever seen in my 38 years of life. I wish I could rewind time and stab myself instead of watch this.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/15/24

Full Review

Ken W

An absolute waste of film,,time!

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

10/04/23

Full Review

Thomas V

I love Woody Harelson but this movie is awful. I tried giving it a chance and watching the entire movie. It only gets worse as the movie progresses.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

08/03/23

Full Review

Bunk M

Woody can play his alter ego as well as himself here, with L.A. street experience, that's made him both the best & the worst.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/02/23

Full Review

Ian R

A movie that is more emotionally complex than most police/crime dramas. Harrelson is excellent as the self tortured LA cop. No big shootouts or car chases, but just a good story. Great support from the rest of the cast. Well worth watching especially on a streaming platform.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

10/18/22

Full Review

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Oren Moverman

Director

Woody Harrelson

Dave Brown

Ben Foster

General Terry

Anne Heche

Catherine

Ice Cube

Kyle Timkins

Brie Larson

Helen

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Oren Moverman on Rampart and Directing Woody Harrelson

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Synopsis

In 1999, Officer Dave Brown (Woody Harrelson), a 24-year veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department, tends to follow his own code of rough justice. A number of years earlier, he was implicated in the death of a serial rapist. Brown's violent tendencies once again land him in hot water when a video of him beating up a suspect plays all over local TV. An assistant DA (Sigourney Weaver) pressures him to retire, but Brown edges closer and closer to a meltdown.

Director: Oren Moverman
Producer: Paul Currie, Lila Yacoub, Michael DeFranco, Garrett Kelleher
Screenwriter: Oren Moverman, James Ellroy
Distributor: Millennium Films
Production Co: Amalgam Features, Lightstream Entertainment, Third Mind Pictures, Waypoint Entertainment
Rating: R (Sexual Content|Pervasive Language|Some Violence)
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 10, 2012, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 8, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $969.2K
Runtime: 1h 43m

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