"Bad Lieutenant" was a scuzzy 1992 film by New York City auteur Abel Ferrara that featured a sordid story and one helluva riveting performance from Harvey Keitel as an unlikable cop addicted to gambling, drugs and sex with hookers. Along with "Reservoir Dogs" and "The Piano," it marked a high point in Keitel's career and was perhaps his edgiest role.
As such, it needed a remake about as much as Tiger Woods needs to be popping Viagra — there's just no upside to the idea. Nevertheless, along comes "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call — New Orleans," a deep-South redo of Ferrara's Manhattan-set film.
Looking over its various components, the reasons for the film become clearer. There's Werner Herzog, gifted art-house director ("Aguirre, the Wrath of God," "Fitzcarraldo") who's too off-the-wall to attract much in the way of financing these days; there's producer Edward Pressman, who produced the first "Bad Lieutenant" film and is always eager to add to his resume of great directors on low budgets; and then there's actor Nicolas Cage, desperate to regain some serious actor cred after all those popcorn performances in dreck like "National Treasure" and "Ghost Rider." Basically, story-that-worked-before plus director-with-Cannes-awards plus actor-with-name-recognition equals something you can sell. At least on paper.