Based on a true story, and on the facts - insofar as they will ever actually be known - this is a gritty and quite depressing depiction from Kathryn Bigelow of one traumatic night in the city. It was during a night of rioting that a squad of police officers respond to reports of gunshots at a city hotel. Upon entering they discover a group of black youths, a couple of white girls - and what follows is a potent mix of racial hatred, bigotry and violence as the boys in blue leave what integrity they might have had at the door and leave again with three dead bodies and nine others savagely beaten...