There are three main characters in Curtis Hanson's L.A. Confidential (originally released in 1997): Ed Exley, Officer Wendell, and Jack Vincennes.
The first character that audiences are first introduced to is Ed Exley, who is a determined and intelligent but oftentimes annoying detective who is consumed in his pursuit of a man he calls "Rollo Tomasi," who is the man that killed his father in cold blood. Towards the start of the film, Exley is asked to testify in the so-called "Bloody Christmas" case in exchange for a promotion to detective lieutenant, thereby taking his father's place on the police force. Exley accepts this request to testify, but is heavily chastised by his fellow officers because of it.
The second character which the film introduces audiences to is Officer Wendell, who audiences quickly learn is a violent but resolute man who has a set of principles that he invariably sticks with. Very quickly, Wendell and Exley team up together to solve a botched robbery and multiple homicides. Wendell and Exley unravel the conspiracy and engage in a number of chases and shootouts. They also discover that their police captain called Dudley Smith was involved in a massive police conspiracy, something which puts them in grave danger.
The third (and final) character that audiences are introduced to is Jack Vincennes, who is a good but corrupt cop that sells his leads to a gossip magazine. Along with Wendell and Exley, Vincennes arrests the men responsible for the aforementioned robbery and murder and starts to investigate Captain Smith, who kills him because of what he knows.
