About

You can stream Southland (2009) on Netflix with a subscription.

A raw and authentic look into the Los Angeles crime scene, going far inside the lives of cops, criminals, victims and their families. The show centers on four main characters: Officer John Cooper, a seasoned cop who will have to prove himself again after recovering from surgery; Officer Ben Sherman, who still has much to learn after recently completing his training rotation; Detective Lydia Adams, whose unending caseload hits closer to home; and Sammy Bryant, a former detective who decided to go back to being a uniform cop after the traumatic death of his partner.

Forget the polished heroics of typical police procedurals for this unvarnished, handheld look at the chaos of Los Angeles patrol life. It trades cinematic perfection for a restless, documentary-style intimacy that makes every siren and street corner feel dangerously real.