When one person both directs and writes a film, it is that much easier to know who to point the finger at when the movie does not turn out as planned. In the case of “Street Kings,” director David Ayer (“Harsh Time”) is to blame, but for not taking a bigger role in the writing of this film. Lacking the expertise Ayer brought to the acclaimed “Training Day,” “Street Kings” is a respectable crime thriller that held the promise of being much more.

What the film lacks in plot and compelling dialogue, it makes up for in riveting action. The down-and-dirty violence and constant gunfire generate enough energy to keep the movie moving through scenes in which screenplay flaws try to drag it down.

In “Street Kings,” Ayer takes his audience to the treacherous streets of southern California, where ruthless detective Tom Ludlow (Keanu Reeves, “The Lake House”) takes down the bad guys by any means necessary, even if it requires violating the law or manipulating evidence to cover his questionable methods. However, this all changes when his former partner is killed, and Ludlow is framed for the murder. Ludlow realizes he must go up against the corrupted world he has become a part of in order to find the real killers, and in the process he begins to discover just where his real loyalties lie.

Without question, this plot is definitely entertaining. The story glides effortlessly through a dark culture loaded with good cops gone bad and unforgiving criminals who stick tightly along their racial lines and even more tightly to their automatics. A captivating background that blends the piercing glow of the Los Angeles skyline with the shadowy depths of the ghettos helps pull the audience deeper into the movie’s explosive atmosphere.

The plotline’s major problem is in delivering its supposedly unexpected twist. The conspiracy that goes on in the film is so blatantly obvious the audience catches on to it way before Ludlow does.

Because this conspiracy is so transparent, all the dialogue that attempts to build up a heightened sense of mystery to confuse Ludlow as well as the audience is rendered quite pointless. It only makes an already horrendous script even worse. There is no real emotion in anything the characters say, but the actors sure try to make you think otherwise. Unfortunately, yelling really loud and swearing a lot does not measure up to the moving eloquence of powerful dialogue that stimulates instead of overpowers the senses.

Despite having the emotions of a robot, Reeves still makes a formidable action hero. He distills in Ludlow a sense of brutal coolness that makes his knack for barging into situations with reckless abandon and a preference to shoot first and ask questions later a spine-tingling experience.

Forrest Whitaker (“Vantage Point”) and Hugh Laurie (“House M.D.”) are both very talented and do an excellent job with what they are given. If only the writers had spent a little more time developing and keying in on the tension between the corrupt Capt. Jack Wander (Whitaker) and the moral Capt. James Biggs (Laurie), these two actors would have had more �opportunities to help this film shine.

The film’s creators did not do as well in casting the bad guys. Going along with the recent trend of casting rappers with no acting skills, Common and The Game play criminals in the movie. Even worse is the casting of the perennially unfunny Cedric the Entertainer, who fails to provide his intended purpose of comic relief as a drug dealer named Scribble.

Although Ayer tries to enrich this film with an underlying theme of a man trying to find his true identity in a troubled city, the film’s weaknesses mask this dramatic aspect, making it visible only to those who take extra care to actually look for it. Therefore, the film should be taken only for what it is: a clear-cut action flick.�

In the end, “Street Kings” is engaging enough for the audience to sidestep the screenplay’s sporadic pitfalls. Its gritty violence and merciless nature spark up enough emotion to more than cover for the dispassionate conversation. For this reason, “Street Kings” is a good enough time and a worthy venture.

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3 stars out of 5