When Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, are on the same screen for two hours, you pay attention. You pay attention to their swagger, their aging features, and their maneuvers, even their gestures.  By today’s end, millions will be paying attention in the new film Righteous Kill, due in theatres today nationwide. Although Robert De Niro (Detective Turk) gets top billing in this one, it’s Al Pacino (Detective Rooster) who steals the show in this gripping, cop-gone-bad, thriller.

The plot is simple enough: two long-time homicide detectives have come upon their final murder investigation. The investigation starts with a single murder, which turns into two and by the middle of the film, raises to fourteen and a full-blown serial killing spree.

Detective Rooster is the cool partner between the two; concealing his anger with a nod, a quick witted comeback line or a hand gesture in court and in the field. Turk is the hot head, violently sexing it up with the female investigator (Carla Gugino), and losing his head when murderers and rapists get off on legal technicalities.

Along with Turk and Rooster, we have Det. Simon Perez (John Leguizamo), and Det. Ted Riley(Donnie Wahlberg), who share screen time as department rivals and co-horts in search for the killer. Perez plays counter Turk, whom he believes to be the actual serial killer. The eruptive scenes between the two are some of the most riveting scenes in the movie.

It’s almost too obvious that Perez has solved the crime but can’t seem to find the needed evidence. He and Turk argue with each other as if they have hated each other for years, yet beneath the hostility, anger, and resentment, they are bound by the badge. 

Righteous Kill will make you think twice about the police and your respect for what they do and how they perform their jobs. If a rapist goes free, yet ends up dead the next day, was that justice or a righteous kill? You decide.

Curtis Jackson (50 Cent) has third billing after De Niro and Pacino in the opening credits. He portrays the drug dealing club owner Spider, whom the detectives are trying to take down throughout the movie. His lines and performance is minimally entertaining at best.

In a nutshell, this film is a definite for De Niro and Pacino fans. Although they’re getting older and wiser, their presence on the scene is still captivating. You can’t help but be riveted by their performances and rustle with the fact that they represent a dying form of righteousness.