Every once in awhile a film comes along that restores moviegoers’ faith in Hollywood a film that succeeds in script, direction and acting while delivering punch after punch of unpredictable plot twists. And there could not be a better movie to give some credence to Tinseltown than a movie about the city itself.

L.A. Confidential revolves around the 1950s L.A.P.D. The department is glamorized in tabloids and television shows and is the envy of police departments across the country.

Rival Detectives Ed Exley (Russell Crowe) and Bud White (Guy Pearce) are each involved with personal agendas while separately investigating the same restaurant massacre.

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Exley is the golden boy of the L.A.P.D., devoting his career to honest justice. White, on the other hand, is a soft spoken, short-tempered muscle man, used mostly for beating confessions out of criminals.

Crowe and Pearce develop their characters so well that the screen time the two share is incredibly intense with their conflicting personalities.

With the help of celebrity cop Jack Vincennes (Kevin Spacey), the technical adviser to the hit television show Badge of Honor, the detectives uncover a deadly mixture of police corruption and organized crime.

And as the plot develops, so do the characters’ snowballing intensities. The film climaxes to a very well-filmed shoot-out with Exley and White fighting innumerable bad guys.

L.A. Confidential works utilizing an interesting blend of 90s and 50s film noir seen similarly in The Usual Suspects.

Director Curtis Hanson keeps the surprises coming throughout the entire film, and he also avoids letting the complex plot get too confusing.

Kim Basinger, Danny DeVito and James Cromwell (Babe) show up in strong supporting roles.

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But the electricity between newcomers Exley and White is so strong the two end up not only stealing the show, but carrying the weight of its success.