Coming from a veteran director whose most recent film was one of worst I've seen this year (don't see 88 MINUTES, also starring Al Pacino), I didn't expect much from Jon Avnet's latest film, Righteous Kill, despite its heavyweight stars. I'm pleased that I got what I expected—a clunky, average, yet generally engrossing crime thriller exploring good and evil and how each could be used as a means to justify the other.

Two reputable American actors—Al Pacino and Robert DeNiro—play veteran detectives who are in the middle of investigating a few homicides that seem linked to a closed case from years back. These murders point to a suspect that may or may not be within the ranks of the NYPD. As they tangle further into the investigation, everyone is a suspect.

In many ways, Righteous Kill is your standard whodunit crime thriller that ends with a bit of a twist, so there is some definite entertainment value. And I think the story benefits from the decision to start with what seems to be a killer's confession. However, I expected better writing from Inside Man writer Russell Gewirtz and yes, even better acting from the Pacino/DeNiro dynamic duo. I was disappointed that the film starts with some unintentional humor with its brief character intros and cheesy title sequence. I was afraid the horrid leftovers from 88 Minutes were being hashed into this new film. Then things started to pick up and I was somewhat intrigued in spite of some hokey dialogue and subplot.

Over the course of the film, the relationship/contrast between the two detectives is crucial. Rooster (Pacino) is the cool and calculating, wise-cracking half of the duo. He's a devout Catholic who calls an act of planting evidence at a crime scene "righteous," using the idea that evil will prevail when no good men stand up and do something. Turk (DeNiro) is a more violent character, hotheaded and unafraid to bend some rules for righteousness' sake. He loves his job and is happy when the bad guys reap what they sow. And as with DeNiro's Travis Bickle from Taxi Driver, the surrounding evil in New York troubles him, and he's frustrated that even the cops are afraid to do anything about it. Together these guys are a rock-solid team, backing each other up no matter what.

Because the recent murders involve victims who were criminals, Turk's and Rooster's attitudes toward the investigation lean in the "oh well, they were only scumbags" direction. But the murderer leaves behind a written moral poem for every victim, explaining why the victim deserved execution. While Turk and Rooster are almost thankful that someone's taking the law into his own hands and making their jobs easier, the evidence begins to point toward them. No one wants to say it out loud except for another couple of detectives from another precinct (John Leguizamo and Donnie Wahlberg). As Turk and Rooster become prime suspects in the case, they also vocalize their opinions on the idea of doing evil for good's sake—the end justifying the means.

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