As yet another in the parade of gritty modern cop thrillers — almost all of them set in the City of Angels — End of Watch distinguishes itself only in the palpable partnership established between fellow cops Brian Taylor (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Mike Zavala (Michael Peña).  Their chemistry is tremendous throughout, persuading us that they are, indeed, the ideal partners to patrol the streets of Los Angeles.

David Aker’s film, which is relentlessly profane and occasionally brutal, chronicles their lives as completely and utterly dominated by their work.  Personal relationships are subservient to the job, and the constant danger they face influences their social behavior.  The film presents the men as just that, not heroes and not villains, though their acts are sometimes fearless and sometimes appalling.  End of Watch is intended to be an honest, penetrating glimpse at what it takes to be a modern cop, and for the most part the movie succeeds in this task.

What doesn’t work, at least for me, is the style.  The camerawork is almost all hand-held, which grows tiresome.  Worse still is that while an omnipotent perspective is used some of the time, frequent footage is staged by having Taylor record almost everything he can with a camcorder and a pocket camera.  One or the other method would work, but not both.  Adding to the inconsistency are scenes involving members of a drug cartel preparing to ambush the unknowing officers; these seem out of place when so much personal perspective is employed by the cops.  Aker should have chosen one technique and stuck with it; his film seems disjointed because he did not.

There are also inconsistencies in the plotting, particularly during the ambush which climaxes the action.  And when the film ends, it is shocking that someone has lived, despite all evidence to the contrary.  For those who like rugged, gritty cop dramas, End of Watch should be acceptable, if not notable.  But this film could have been far more effective than it is; another director, I think, could have improved the technique and kept Aker’s dark vision of the streets intact.  ☆ ☆ 1/2.  17 October 2012.