Greetings again from the darkness. Admittedly, I am one of those who take movies very seriously. Good movies make me happy (even the sad ones), and bad movies make me sulk. Every now and then, one comes along that I find myself enjoying despite the warning buzzers blasting in my film snob brain. Such is the latest from director Ruben Fleisher (who also directed the entertaining Zombieland).
"Inspired by true events" should always be interpreted as a disclaimer that the movie will play fast and loose with history and the details of the story. Sean Penn plays Mickey Cohen, a renowned Los Angeles gangster from the late 40's. Due to widespread police corruption, Police Chief Parker (Nick Nolte) authorized an "off the books" team to take down mob operations (gambling, prostitution, etc). This much was documented in Paul Lieberman's book. How this story is presented by Fleisher and screenwriter Will Beall (signed on for the Justice League movie) has more in common with a comic book than actual history.
The movie is extremely beautiful to look at. It's slick and stylish with a glamorous color palette, and the production design is top notch - capturing the look and feel of a booming Los Angeles. If you are expecting the next "L.A. Confidential" or even "The Untouchables", you will be disappointed. It's more in line with "Dick Tracy", "Scarface", and "Hoffa". In other words ... it looks great and the action, characters and dialogue are all way over the top.
The cast is superb, but most are underutilized. Josh Brolin is the tough leader of the squad that features Ryan Gosling (the token cool womanizer), Robert Patrick (the token dead-eye gunslinger), Anthony Mackie (the innercity, knife-wielding token black cop), Giovanni Ribisi (the token geeky electronics expert), and Michael Pena (the rookie and token Hispanic cop). Unfortunately, my crude descriptions are just about as in-depth as the movie goes with any of them. In fact, Yvette Tucker playing Carmen Miranda, gets almost as much screen time as any of these cops as she sings "Chica Chica Boom Chic".
The violence is cartoonish in its fervor. The aim of these gangsters is among the worst in movie history, and that's quite an accomplishment. Using Tommy Guns and pistols, my estimate is that one in every 167 shots actually hits an intended target. Many elaborate set pieces are destroyed in the process. The exception is Robert Patrick's character, who is actually featured in a detective serial. He never misses ... even after being wounded. Penn plays Cohen as a ruthless mob boss, unwilling to accept any failure from his crew. And you know what that means. No pink slips here ... just ugly death via power drill, burning elevator or classic car tug-of-war.
An interesting note is the presence of three actors from recent cult TV shows. Holt McCallany (Lights Out), Mireille Enos (The Killing) and Troy Garity (Boss) all have key roles in the film, as does Jon Polito, whose face and voice make him a must-cast in any gangster film.
If you are able to turn off the logical and reasoning part of your brain ... just sit back and enjoy Emma Stone smoking a cig while wearing a red evening gown, an understated Ryan Gosling with an odd speech pattern, Sean Penn wearing a prosthetic nose and spewing hilarious bad guy lines, and the creepy feeling that Josh Brolin is just 25 years away from looking and sounding exactly like Nick Nolte ... then hopefully you can take this one for what it is - a guilty pleasure. www.MovieReviewsFromTheDark.wordpress.com
"Inspired by true events" should always be interpreted as a disclaimer that the movie will play fast and loose with history and the details of the story. Sean Penn plays Mickey Cohen, a renowned Los Angeles gangster from the late 40's. Due to widespread police corruption, Police Chief Parker (Nick Nolte) authorized an "off the books" team to take down mob operations (gambling, prostitution, etc). This much was documented in Paul Lieberman's book. How this story is presented by Fleisher and screenwriter Will Beall (signed on for the Justice League movie) has more in common with a comic book than actual history.
The movie is extremely beautiful to look at. It's slick and stylish with a glamorous color palette, and the production design is top notch - capturing the look and feel of a booming Los Angeles. If you are expecting the next "L.A. Confidential" or even "The Untouchables", you will be disappointed. It's more in line with "Dick Tracy", "Scarface", and "Hoffa". In other words ... it looks great and the action, characters and dialogue are all way over the top.
The cast is superb, but most are underutilized. Josh Brolin is the tough leader of the squad that features Ryan Gosling (the token cool womanizer), Robert Patrick (the token dead-eye gunslinger), Anthony Mackie (the innercity, knife-wielding token black cop), Giovanni Ribisi (the token geeky electronics expert), and Michael Pena (the rookie and token Hispanic cop). Unfortunately, my crude descriptions are just about as in-depth as the movie goes with any of them. In fact, Yvette Tucker playing Carmen Miranda, gets almost as much screen time as any of these cops as she sings "Chica Chica Boom Chic".
The violence is cartoonish in its fervor. The aim of these gangsters is among the worst in movie history, and that's quite an accomplishment. Using Tommy Guns and pistols, my estimate is that one in every 167 shots actually hits an intended target. Many elaborate set pieces are destroyed in the process. The exception is Robert Patrick's character, who is actually featured in a detective serial. He never misses ... even after being wounded. Penn plays Cohen as a ruthless mob boss, unwilling to accept any failure from his crew. And you know what that means. No pink slips here ... just ugly death via power drill, burning elevator or classic car tug-of-war.
An interesting note is the presence of three actors from recent cult TV shows. Holt McCallany (Lights Out), Mireille Enos (The Killing) and Troy Garity (Boss) all have key roles in the film, as does Jon Polito, whose face and voice make him a must-cast in any gangster film.
If you are able to turn off the logical and reasoning part of your brain ... just sit back and enjoy Emma Stone smoking a cig while wearing a red evening gown, an understated Ryan Gosling with an odd speech pattern, Sean Penn wearing a prosthetic nose and spewing hilarious bad guy lines, and the creepy feeling that Josh Brolin is just 25 years away from looking and sounding exactly like Nick Nolte ... then hopefully you can take this one for what it is - a guilty pleasure. www.MovieReviewsFromTheDark.wordpress.com