This one has every tired cop flick cliche imagined -- the partner loved like a brother, the hooker sister who ends up killed by a mask-wearing trick, other street walkers who all look like expensive call-girls and do their stuff to "Gee, is this a porno?" background music, the police command that's always making life difficult for the put-upon, hard-drinking partners (one Black, one White; one married, one single; blah blah blah).
For me, the highpoints of these films are those scenes in the Police Chief's office. You know the drill: "I'm watching you, G_dammit! One more dead suspect and you'll be walking a beat in the worst part of town I can find. You're OFF this case, capisce?!" In this regard, "Shotgun" did not disappoint. It kept me happy, too, with the camera work, acting, transitions, plot tricks and, especially, that God-awful heavy metal guitar soundtrack. The only thing missing was one of those moments where the hero cop splashes his face with cold water and stares intensely at himself in the mirror before the cutaway to the next head-bashing scene. But for that, it would be a perfect 10 in that parallel movie universe one enters through the bottom of a bottle of booze.
Summary: -10 stars in this Universe. Watch it late at night with an equally drunk friend and enjoy.
