Deputy Mayor Kevin Calhoun (Cusack) is utterly devoted to his boss, John Pappas (Pacino), the popular Mayor of New York who seems to be doing a great job. But a big can of worms opens up after a little boy is accidentally shot during a shootout between a narcotics detective and a mob family member. Urged on by the attorney for the detective's widow and family (a fairly small and meaningless role for Fonda), Calhoun starts digging for information, and discovers the mobster was out on the streets after having clearly violated his probation. The trail leads through a judge caught taking bribes and causes Calhoun to question nearly everything he has believed. Despite a good cast (especially Pacino, and Aiello as a borough political chief), and tinkering by some top veteran screenwriters such as Paul Schrader, Bo Goldman, and Nicholas Pileggi, this 1996 political thriller is but so-so and is easily forgotten.
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The review of this Movie prepared by David Loftus