‎To Live and Die in L.A. (1985) directed by William Friedkin • Reviews, film + cast • Letterboxd

To Live and Die in L.A.

1985 Directed by William Friedkin

A federal agent is dead. A killer is loose. And the City of Angels is about to explode.

A fearless Secret Service agent will stop at nothing to bring down the counterfeiter who killed his partner.

William Petersen Willem Dafoe John Pankow Debra Feuer John Turturro Dean Stockwell Robert Downey Sr. Darlanne Fluegel Steve James Michael Greene Christopher Allport Valentin de Vargas Dwier Brown Michael Chong Jacqueline Giroux

116 mins More details at IMDb TMDb Report this film

Popular reviews

Review by Jake 10

"Guess what? Uncle Sam don't give a shit about your expenses. You want bread, fuck a baker."

Removed from the partnering of the other stylish cop picture featuring William Petersen (Manhunter) and whatever feeling you have about Wang Chung (it's probably wrong), this sleaze jam is as deserving of the praise now being bestowed on the first film in tonight's Friedkin double bill: Sorcerer.

Friedkin's continual fascination of the internal struggle between good & evil roars through the grimy & steamy haze of Los Angeles. Petersen's Richard Chance is a thrill junkie, stretching each case, bust, and interpersonal relationship to a breaking point; his nemesis, Willem Dafoe's Rick Masters is an icy artist/counterfeiter who never makes a false move. The image of…
Review by Wesley R. Ball ★★★★★ 3

Purely quintessential 80's cinema- a blood laced, coke-induced thrill ride set to the timeless backdrop of a neon sunset and the eternally melodic bars of Wang Chung.

Possibly William Friedkin's masterpiece.
Review by Alice Bishop ★★★★ 3

Like all of Friedkin’s most notable adaptations, To Live and Die in L.A. is murky and elliptical in its storytelling, idolising an unethical protagonist who fights dirty, experiencing the thrill of a life of crime while always hiding behind the badge of a lawman. Often no better than a hard-nosed gangster with a vengeful attitude, Richard Chance is the kind of guy who opens a briefcase with a concrete block and his badassery extends beyond his code of honour as he ‘services’ lady friends for tip-offs and jumps over security barriers before dragging perps into custody.

Read the full review here.
Review by alien brain 👽 ★★★★½ 6

People talk about the neon '80s, or recent movies that attempt to evoke that aesthetic, but I feel like this is a gross oversimplification of what defines the look and feel of a film like To Live and Die in L.A. or ostensibly similar stuff like Manhunter, Scarface, Repo Man (which was also shot by Robby Müller, along with this one and Paris, Texas), or even RoboCop. It's also defined by stark whites and eye-catching compositions, and grit (in the setting and the film grain) that really gives the 'neon' colors a textured glow I have set to see replicated in any genre throwbacks to this particular era. Vibrant hues bleed into the sleaze and absurdity, literally coloring our perception…
Review by sydney ★★★★★ 6

Petersen's inability to play a stone-cold badass makes his psychosis even more alarming,
the more ridiculous parts of the soundtrack make this feel even more creepy (rather than laughable),
I was thinking i'd give this 3.5 or 4 stars because some of the editing (especially in the first half) bothered me,
but then the last 10-15 minutes happened and I feel pretty
something
Review by Eli Hayes ★★★★½ 6

Well that's one way to end a film.

Recent reviews

Review by Aranoo ★★★★

Energico Thriller poliziesco dove vediamo due Agenti federali indagare su un Falsario in una calda Los Angeles. Un Film decisamente anni 80 con la sua costante colonna sonora d'annata che da ritmo ad ogni scena, Parte un po' sbrodolando con un ridicolo e sbrigativo attacco terroristico ma poi lentamente l'indagine prende corpo e diventa sempre piu interessante. Tra inseguimenti e accordi criminali vediamo un giovane Dafoe che fa senza sforzarsi un viscido artista piromane, un Turturro un po' sprecato ma che funziona sempre nella parte del codardo e William Petersen che regge bene il ruolo dello spericolato uomo d'azione con giacca di pelle anche se gli manca quella scintilla di follia in piu che secondo me richiedeva il personaggio. Tra…
Review by TrundleTheGreat ★★★

Gotta say, never saw the end coming.
Review by Kip Mooney ★★★½

Supremely stylish, and filled with good performances. But overall left me cold and a little queasy at its complete lack of morality. (I did not have this problem with The French Connection, Manhunter or Sicario.)
Review by JDWakeland ★★★

Now I really want to play GTA: Vice City again.
Review by Andy Moss ★★★½

What Micheal Mann would have made after a two day cocaine binge.
Review by jpaton ★★★★★ 2

This thing doesn't stop from the moment you hit play. Just streaking colours flying at the speed of a pumping soundtrack. A fucking weird film, filled with weirdo's. I can never tell if our hero truly means to be an asshole or is just being a dick for laughs. Dude is on the edge. Living by some bullshit code of go hard or go home. The same goes for Dafoe's character. Interesting thing Friedkin said: "he makes counterfeit money to support his art so he can burn it". Shit man the whole movie is about the self imposed pressures from your work, your art, your family, everything. Everyone just needs to lighten up, including me.
Review by travisdirector ★★★★½

This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

I rewatched Friedkin's crime film to study it for the 80s set thriller I'm about to make. What I didn't expect was to have a completely different take on it this time.

I remembered liking it, placing it next to Manhunter and other stylish 80s films of the genre. But this watch, it felt very different from those films. Perhaps having read more about Friekdin, I appreciated more the themes of this piece.

Again, Friekdin studies good and evil but this time more on the evil side. It's amazing how dark of a protagonist Chance (played by Petersen) is throughout the picture. He's merciless with his love interest, with his partner, with anything that stands between getting the "bad guy".…
Review by Col Todd ★★★½

Good but so 80s that after a while it begins to hurt...and Wang Chung!
Review by Matt Gaffney ★★★★½

Wow, can't believe I let this sit on my shelf for so long. I think I assumed it would be very good, but I had no idea how *entertaining* it would be. Gorgeously shot, the music is fantastic & frequent, and that car chase might be the greatest I've ever seen. The only thing that holds it back from a perfect score for me is a few elements I didn't quite grasp. So, that's more on me than anything, and might become clear on a rewatch, which I'm already looking forward to.