Internal Affairs - Good Cop vs. Bad Cop...But Is It Too Much?

Okay, so I finally got around to watching "Internal Affairs" (1990) the other night after hearing about it FOREVER. Michael and the kids were at Grandma's, so I figured, hey, classic thriller time! Richard Gere is, well, Richard Gere, being all smarmy and borderline terrifying as Dennis Peck. Andy Garcia is good too as the 'good cop,' Raymond Avila...but I have to say, some of the stuff in this movie REALLY pushed the line for me. I'm all for a good suspenseful cop drama, but Peck's character just felt...excessive? Like the scene where he's basically taunting Avila in his own home about his wife...shudders. I get that he's supposed to be this super manipulative, morally bankrupt guy, but did they really need to go that far? It just felt a little exploitative to me. I'm also not sure I fully bought Garcia's performance, sometimes he felt a little... wooden? I think Gere was almost too convincing, which maybe made the contrast a little off? My question for you guys is: did anyone else feel like the film went a little overboard with the 'bad guy' portrayal? I mean, I appreciate good suspense, but there's a difference between suspense and just making the audience uncomfortable for the sake of it. Maybe it's because I'm a mom now and super sensitive to certain things, but I'm curious if anyone else had a similar reaction. And let's be honest, was the ending satisfying for anyone? It felt kind of abrupt after all that buildup!