Review of The Rookie (1990) by Compi24 — 23 Jul 2020

While I think that, on the whole, the man's filmography ranges from "meh" ("Absolute Power," "Hereafter, "etc.) to "terrific" ("Million Dollar Baby," "Gran Torino," etc.

) this particular Eastwood-directed movie is hard to apologize for. I'd probably even go so far as to say it's the worst one I've seen yet. "The Rookie's" first half plays out like what you sort of expect a movie on the lower end of the Eastwood entertainment spectrum to feel like.

Slow, understated, but with some minor moments of levity and fun scattered about. The second half, however, takes a flying leap down the drain, as we're all of a sudden introduced to a whole host of new problems.

Filled out with some frustratingly incongruous plotting, some truly horrific bit character acting and one of the most head-scratchingly out-of-place and unnecessary scenes I've ever seen in a movie like this, it almost felt like the second half of this was like a cry for help.

My general rule of thumb with Eastwood movies is this — they're only as good as their script, because Clint (God, love him) sure isn't going to polish a turd with his admittedly by-the-numbers directorial style.

And boy, oh, boy, what a turd this script is.