The narrative casts the director/star as Nick Pulovski, an expectedly hard-bitten veteran of the LAPD's grand theft auto detail, and the early going finds his staged sting of a luxury car boosting ring going horribly awry. The botch leads to Nick's partner getting gunned down, and the payoff of a freeway chase where the bad guys jettison the goods from a moving tractor-trailer in order to cut off Pulovski's pursuit.
Of course, the department picks this juncture to team Nick with a young cop on his first plainclothes assignment, titular tyro David Ackerman (Charlie Sheen). Ackerman isn't without baggage of his own; haunted by the role he played in the childhood death of his brother, Ackerman is compelled to seek out the riskiest beat available, much to the consternation of his law school student girlfriend (Lara Flynn Boyle) and his rich businessman father (Tom Skerritt).
As Pulovski grudgingly indoctrinates David during the investigation, they exert increasing pressure on the activities of the heist ring, to the building ire of mastermind Strom (Raul Julia) and his sultry bodyguard/mistress Liesl (Sonia Braga). The crooks are intent on cutting their losses by ripping off their mob sponsors and leaving town; Nick's attempt to stop the robbery only results in his capture, and the novice Ackerman becomes his only means of getting out alive.
The Rookie is no worse than any number of crusty vet/greenhorn partner actioners that went before, but nor is it any better. Ostensibly mounted by Eastwood as a thank-you gesture to Warner for getting behind the decidedly less commercial White Hunter, Black Heart (1990), The Rookie suffered from being too familiar in its content, and its domestic receipts at $21 million were disappointing. Clint's work before and behind the camera here is competent but rote, as he seems to be primarily searching for a catchphrase that will click.
Sheen, caught here back in the days before his name elicited lewd smirks, is one-note but serviceable, showing signs of decent deadpan comic rapport with Eastwood and very effective in the showcase where he torches a biker bar in search of Pulovski. Julia and Braga may be the most improbably cast Teutons in film history, and while neither was given much challenge by their parts, the scene where Liesl had her way with a handcuffed and helpless Pulovski gave Clint his kinkiest screen moment since Tightrope (1984).
As before, The Rookie's primary values come from its elaborate action sequences, which belie the film's relatively modest budget and remind us now living in the CGI era how effective the results of good stunt work can be. In addition to the aforementioned scenes, the moments where Pulovski pilots a Mercedes out the upper floor of an exploding warehouse remains particularly eye-popping. All in all, though, The Rookie stands as the type of pat vehicle that ultimately necessitated for Eastwood the career jump-start provided by Unforgiven (1992).
Warner digitally transferred The Rookie for DVD release, and the images are sharp and do service to the muted palate used by cinematographer Jack N. Green. An effective effort was also put in on the soundtrack, which was remastered in Dolby 5.1; a spoken French-language track is included. The amamorphic widescreen presentation preserves the theatrical 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The extra features are spare, with only the theatrical trailer and an Eastwood filmography included.
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by Jay S. Steinberg
