The Glass Shield (1995)

Directed by Charles Burnett. Starring Michael Boatman, Lori Petty, Bernie Casey, Richard Anderson, Michael Ironside, Don Harvey, Erich Anderson, M. Emmet Walsh, Tommy Hicks, Elliott Gould, Wanda De Jesus, Natalija Nogulich, Ice Cube, Victoria Dillard. [PG-13]

Idealistic but wet-behind-the-ears Boatman becomes the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department’s first black deputy and immediately feels badgered and excluded by his white colleagues, although he eventually strikes up a kinship with Petty, who just so happens to be the department’s first female deputy. Involved in a prejudicial stop and arrest, he’s called upon to lie under oath, but the case has far-reaching implications that go beyond his control or understanding. Disappointingly routine outing for writer/director Burnett, covering a lot of topical yet familiar territory and spelling out its themes and emotions instead of suggesting them. He also leaves a lot of loose ends that didn’t need to be tugged at to begin with (e.g., Elliott Gould’s potential complicity in the murder case at the center of the story). Underwritten characters abound in the corrupt sheriff’s station and in Boatman’s personal life, including a cut-and-paste significant other who’s just around in a few brief scenes to look worried and absorb his frustration, which wouldn’t be quite as much of an issue if the script wasn’t so focused on the mechanics of the investigation/crime instead of the personalities of its principals and the details of day-to-day police work. Loosely based on a real case, but familiar moral dilemmas and melodrama take precedence over the weight of the conspiracy. Screened in several festivals the year prior to its release. Despite being prominently featured in the marketing materials, Ice Cube rates little more than a glorified cameo followed by a number of background appearances.

46/100