Plot

Set against the backdrop of the glitz, glamour, grit and noir of early 1950's Los Angeles, the film revolves around three LAPD officers who are caught up in a mix of corruption, sex, lies, and murder following a mass killing at the Nite Owl coffee shop. The story eventually encompasses organized crime, political corruption, heroin, pornography, prostitution, tabloid journalism, institutional racism, plastic surgery and Hollywood. The novel's title refers to the infamous 1950s scandal magazine Confidential, portrayed fictionally therein as Hush-Hush.

The film begins with a narrative by Sid Hudgeons ( Danny DeVito), editor of Hush-Hush magazine, elaborating on the exploits of Los Angeles mafia kingpin Mickey Cohen, his arrest, and the power vacuum left in its wake. The film's main characters are introduced individually: On Christmas Eve, Officer Wendell 'Bud' White ( Russell Crowe) and his partner Dick Stensland are en route to a liquor store when White sees a paroled man beating his wife. White brutally beats the man and handcuffs him to his porch, threatening to violate him on child rape charges if he repeats his offense. Police sergeant Jack Vincennes ( Kevin Spacey), the technical adviser for the fictional TV series Badge of Honor, is shown working in cahoots with Hudgeons, arresting actor Matt Reynolds for possession of marijuana purchased from an associate of Hudgeons as Hudgeons photographs the incident. Sergeant Edmund Exley ( Guy Pearce), acting as watch supervisor, is present

At different intervals the three men investigate the Nite Owl and concurrent events of the case which in turn begin to reveal deep tales of corruption with their own superiors. Ed Exley pursues absolute justice of the Nite Owl slayings all the while trying to live up to his family's prestigious name. Bud White pursues Nite Owl victim Susan Lefferts which leads him to Lynn Bracken, a call-girl with pivotal ties to the events he and Exley independently investigate. Meanwhile, Jack Vincennes follows up on a pornography case which in turn leads to ties to both the Nite Owl and Bracken's handler Pierce Patchett, operator of a call-girl service that runs prostitutes cut to look like movie stars. All three men's fate are thereby intertwined leading to a dramatic showdown with powerful and corrupt forces within the city's political leadership and the department itself.

Changes from novel to film

Helgeland and Hanson were forced to make major changes to the plot to pare the story down to feature-length. Those sections notably missing or shortened are Bud's subplot involving a serial killer who murders prostitutes; Exley's father; Inez Soto's subplot, including Exley's romantic involvement with her; and the Dieterling (Disney) subplot. Also omitted is nearly all of Vincennes' back story and his marriage. Bud's partner loses his job and pension and is killed at the Nite Owl in the film but is not imprisoned. In Exley's back story, the role of his brother is replaced with an anecdote about his father, whose murder by an unknown criminal dubbed " Rollo Tomasi", inspired his police career. Also, Exley is a medal-winning veteran of World War II from the Pacific Theater, moments of which he flashbacks to during the Bloody Christmas riot.

Characters

Guy Pearce as Detective Lieutenant Edmund Exley: the son of a legendary LAPD detective, Exley is a brilliant detective in his own right determined to outdo his father. Ed's intelligence, insistence on following regulations, and cold demeanor contribute to his social isolation from other officers. Their resentment of him grows after testifying against other cops in a police brutality case (a fictional version of the Bloody Christmas incident) early on and reaps the benefit of promotion. He is motivated by justice and a sense of order.

Russell Crowe as Officer Wendell "Bud" White: the most feared man in the LAPD, White is a six-foot tall muscle man. His partner, Dick Stensland, was convicted and expelled from the force following the " Bloody Christmas" scandal by Exley's testimony and Bud vows revenge. His ties to the Nite Owl case become personal after Stensland is one of the victims in the massacre. He has a violent obsession with woman-beaters, counterbalanced by his tenderness towards the victims. His temper often overpowers his thought. He is sought out by Capt. Dudley Smith for a black bag job intimidating outside mafia influence on Los Angeles.

Kevin Spacey as Sergeant Jack Vincennes: a slick Hollywood cop who moonlights as the technical advisor of Badge of Honor, a popular Dragnet-esque television show. Vincennes maintains connections with Sid Hudgeons of Hush-Hush magazine, receiving kickbacks for making orchestrated celebrity arrests involving narcotics and often arranged by Sid himself; attracting more readers to the magazine and more fame to himself in the process.