User Reviews

Great movie , almost an anti woke counter weight and in that an exception of its era Very ironic that the cases on the murders of iconic rappers in their age of being glorified , like gangster rap was glorified , was also the start of the racial divide in a police department like LA The rest is history, and from LA the racial policies issues went to the rest of the USA and even Europe now. I suspect the main reason for the bad ratings was the films excellent, real life driven analysis of the corrupt black LA cops that worked for death row . The riots after 1992 and cases like OJ made it impossible for white cops to investigate some corrupt black ones , an untold story in the current white cops boogeyman era full of lies A city of lies and now a woke world of lies , where police departments from New York to Paris see their best men leave the force . Excellent Johnny Depp and Whitaker

The film is DEPRESSING. Depp is obsessed and looks so old. On top of all that the movie jumps around so much it is hard to follow. Not a difficult movie concept, but somebody must have thought jumping around back and forth would be artistic. It was not.

Tour de force by Johnny Depp and Forest Whitaker. A compelling case and solution for one of the great modern true crime mysteries. A tribute to a great detective, Russell Poole.

Depp, who gives a great performance here, and Whitaker carry a shockingly well-written and directed movie that offers a very credibly and realistic theory into the murder of B.I.G. I really didn't expect much going into this but it surprisingly kept my attention from start to finish. I definitely think this would have been a sleeper hit if it had been released in theaters.

The title is notorious and more than adequate for a film that seems to be built on suspicions, assumptions and even to some extent, conspiracy theories. It wouldn't be so much of a problem if it weren't for the fact that it talks about a real case. A notably high profile case. In the end, it's certainly fiction, the credits themselves say so, but that doesn't prevent this from being quite irresponsible to a certain degree. And it's not like City of Lies creates any kind of damaging speculation, but it also doesn't offer anything especially revealing or crucial about the case at hand. It's merely noise. Johnny Depp and Forest Whitaker are effective leads, if you consider what this story has to offer, but neither of them is able to keep this ship afloat, as it is sinking through many different holes.

Based on the investigation on the murder of LEGENDARY rapper Notorious B.I.G, City of Lies goes over alot of stuff that we already know but this was a strong film that was, unfortunately lost due to the controversy surrounding Johnny Depp. In terms of answers, it points alot of fingers and connects alot of interesting dots. Nonetheless Its a solid film with good performances and solid direction. Who shot Biggie? The world may never know.

I do not understand the “less than” ratings here. This movie was a solid, re-watchable, 10. Depp and Whitaker are superb. Check out that supporting cast. Wow! Just wow!

Amazing film ! Depp and Whitaker are great together ! Highly recommend this film .

Yet another corrupt cop drama. The one is based on the true story of a LA detective (Johnny Depp very underplayed) who tried to expose the truth behind the murder of The Notorious B.I.G.. The story is framed by extensive, dry discussions with a reporter (Forest Whitaker playing the usual), who delves into the case 20 years later. Their review of the facts alternates between scenes from the original investigation with a uninspired style that lacks much punch. Even as it exposes the alleged corruption, director Brad Ferman never manages to bring any sense of outrage to the proceedings. NOTE: Violetta Wallace, the rapper’s mother, plays herself and does a commendable job.

Well made, well directed, & well acted detective procedurual where honest detective Johnny Depp's character is looking for some redemption as he fights the corruption in the LA. Police department. Depp's character, Russell Poole wants to know who was behind the murder of rapper Biggie Smalls. Unfortunately for Russell, the depth of corruption and lies is all too consuming. This movie was better than I expected.

it was so good would highly recommend it bec it gives a moral lesson and a main emotional massage

Amazing movie with brilliant performances from both Depp and Whitaker. Cant wait to buy this movie and DVD, would definitely recommend it.

Not as engaging or insightful as the Unsolved series, but still a decent little crime thriller. Worth checking out.