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Narc (2002)

tomatometer

83

Average Rating: 7.1/10
Reviews Counted: 154
Fresh: 128 | Rotten: 26

Jason Patric and Ray Liotta are electrifying in this gritty, if a little too familiar, cop drama.

73

Average Rating: 6.7/10
Critic Reviews: 30
Fresh: 22 | Rotten: 8

Jason Patric and Ray Liotta are electrifying in this gritty, if a little too familiar, cop drama.

audience

76

liked it
Average Rating: 3.4/5
User Ratings: 26,108

My Rating

Movie Info

Suspended from the police force following an undercover drug bust gone horribly awry, Detroit undercover narcotics officer Nick Tellis (Jason Patric) is reluctantly goaded back into active duty in hopes that he can help to crack the case of a slain fellow officer. Promised reinstatement in the force in exchange for his efforts, Tellis is paired with the victim's volatile ex-partner Henry Oak (Ray Liotta) and soon begins to actively seek the killer in an increasingly complex case. A recent father

R, 1 hr. 45 min.

Drama, Action & Adventure, Mystery & Suspense

Joe Carnahan

Jun 17, 2003

$10.2M

Paramount Pictures

Cast

All Critics (159) | Top Critics (30) | Fresh (132) | Rotten (26) | DVD (20)

As a director Carnahan definitely has the goods... Unfortunately the script is your basic renegade-cop narrative, with the usual hoo-ha about justice versus the law.

April 9, 2008 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | Comment
Chicago Reader
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A chokehold of a movie, grabbing us but not ultimately engaging us.

June 11, 2003 Comment
Hollywood Reporter
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A well-sustained allegory-cum-cop drama.

January 10, 2003 Comment
Washington Post
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It's a stunner that sadly grows tiresome at the end.

January 10, 2003 Comment
Washington Post
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Jason Patric and Ray Liotta make for one splendidly cast pair.

January 10, 2003 Full Review Source: Toronto Star | Comment
Toronto Star
Top Critic IconTop Critic

There are things to admire about Narc, but they're individual things, not the movie as a whole.

January 10, 2003 Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | Comment
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic IconTop Critic

doesn't illuminate the world of the undercover agent or bring anything new to the table

January 8, 2012 Full Review Source: Old School Reviews | Comment

Intense cop movie for adults.

December 26, 2010 Full Review Source: Common Sense Media | Comment
Common Sense Media

The stylish conviction of Carnahan and his never-better leads make this familiar yarn worth caring about.

February 18, 2009 Full Review Source: TheMovieReport.com | Comment
TheMovieReport.com

Carnahan shows flair and confidence.

April 9, 2008 Full Review Source: Observer [UK] | Comment
Observer [UK]

If Carnahan keeps wrenching this material back an inch or two from cliché, it's only an inch or two.

January 26, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out | Comment

For a picture that's billed as fresh and bracing, this is a pretty formulaic scheme, which Carnahan attempts to jolt into life through jittery direction.

March 3, 2005 Comment

Narc est un film extrêmement conventionnel dans son histoire, mais brille dans sa réalisation, son atmosphère et son style.

February 25, 2005 Comment

Sometimes it seems a director tries to pack in as much harsh footage as an R-rating will allow for its own sake. That itself is a violent act. The audience is the victim.

January 15, 2005 Comment
Looking Closer

This is a dark, depressing, excessively violent, profusely profane film, not for the squeamish or anyone who likes elevating entertainment.

October 7, 2004 Full Review Source: tonymedley.com | Comment

A showcase for two talented actors and [Joe] Carnahan's technical wizardry, Narc is welcome entry in a tired genre.

January 6, 2004 Full Review Source: Star-Democrat (Easton, MD) | Comment
Star-Democrat (Easton, MD)

It's a triumph of style over substance, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

September 6, 2003 Comment

The director is helped in no small part by his leading men.

August 31, 2003 Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | Comment
Empire Magazine
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Narc

Brilliant film about an undercover narcotics officer in Detroit who is brought back into a murder case of a fellow policeman after he is suspended from the force due to a drug bust gone awry.Jason Patric and Ray Liotta star in this mesmerizing film that has quite a twist and mood to it created by the dim

September 18, 2008
yona71

Super Reviewer

A detective discharged after the accidental shooting of a pregnant bystander is partnered with a veteran detective with a reputation for excessive force to track down the killers who murdered an undercover cop. In the highly overpopulated genre of the cop thriller, Narc is neither the most original or most action

November 16, 2006
garyX
xGary Xx

Super Reviewer

    1. Lt. Henry Oak: There are no lawyers, dumb-f***!! It's just me and you, and I am in your s*** for the duration!
    – Submitted by Jack B (2 months ago)

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