Tag: Mob

THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK – Review

(L-r) BILLY MAGNUSSEN as Paulie Walnuts, JON BERNTHAL as Johnny Soprano, COREY STOLL as Junior Soprano (in back), JOHN MAGARO as Silvio Dante, RAY LIOTTA as “Hollywood Dick” Moltisanti and ALESSANDRO NIVOLA as Dickie Moltisanti in New Line Cinema and Home Box Office’s “THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo credit: Barry Wetcher / Warner Bros. Courtesy of Warner Brothers Studios

The highly-anticipated “Sopranos” prequel THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK finally arrives in theaters and proves that it was worth the long wait. “The Sopranos” was the influential, award-winning television series that likely started the binge-watching phenomenon, but one of the nice things about this mobster drama is that there is no need to be a fan of the long-running series, or even to have seen a single episode, to fully enjoy this film and be drawn into its well-rounded world and thrilled by its surprise-around-every corner plot. There is plenty here for any fan of mobster movies or twisty thrillers generally. But if you are a Sopranos fan, there are plenty of extra thrills in seeing characters only talked about in the series or younger versions of favorites like Paulie Walnuts and Silvio Dante, and discovering how New Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano and his world came to be.

Focusing on the Soprano-Moltisanti branch of New Jersey’s DiMeo crime family, the film gives an introduction to the world of “The Sopranos” and every major figure from the series at an earlier time. However, if you are a Sopranos fan expecting this film to deliver you right to the doorstep of Tony’s home, with the late James Gandolfini as the grown mob boss trundling out in his robe to get the morning paper, this ain’t it. The story ends with Tony still young but with a brilliant script by series creator David Chase and Lawrence Konner and strong direction by Alan Taylor (whose work included episodes of The Sopranos and Game of Thrones), THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK has creator David Chase’s fingerprints all over it and fully sets up how Tony Soprano and his world came to be, setting the stage for that iconic shot that opened every show but with room to fill in more details.

Set in the turbulent late ’60s and early ’70s in Newark, New Jersey, the story incorporates real historical events, as rival gangs challenge the powerful DiMeo crime family and racial tensions and changing times rock the city of Newark. The film’s striking cinematography by Kramer Morgenthau brings the turbulent times to life, while production designer Bob Shaw (who was with “The Sopranos” for five seasons), effectively recreates the period and the feel of the Sopranos’ world.

THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK introduces us to 11-year-old Anthony Soprano (William Ludwig) and then 16-year-old Tony Soprano (Michael Gandolfini, son of the late Sopranos star). But the young Tony is less the central figure in this tale than his Uncle Dickie Moltisanti (Alessandro Nivola), who was the unseen, but often spoken of, mentor to crime boss Tony’s in the series, as well as the evolution of this world into the world of the Sopranos series. Although young Tony Soprano is in the opening scene, the narration that introduces it comes not from him but from an unseen Christopher Moltisanti, Uncle Dickie’s not-yet-born son. Dickie isn’t really Tony’s uncle but a close friend of Tony’s father and a fellow member of the DiMeo crime family. Dickie, also known as “Gentleman Dick” for his nice manners and smooth style, is a father figure to young Tony while his father Johnny Soprano (Jon Bernthal) is in prison, also serving as Tony’s role model with the approval of Tony’s mother Livia (Vera Farmiga). Dickie’s own father, “Hollywood Dick” Moltisanti (Ray Liotta), a crime boss who once rubbed elbows with stars, has stepped back from running things, turning them over to Dickie. But his hot-tempered father still brings lots of stress to Dickie, after he and his new young Italian wife Giuseppina (Michela De Rossi) move into a shared duplex with his son and his family.

You might wonder who the “saints” are in this crime tale. Moltisanti means “many saints” in Italian but it is not the only reference the film slyly reveals throughout. The first of these “saints” are a street gang of Black youths named the Black Saints, who are stepping on the toes of this established Italian American crime syndicate in Newark. To deal with them, Dickie has brought in childhood friend and former high school football team mate Harold McBrayer (Leslie Odom Jr) to deal with one particularly bold Black Saint. Harold and Dickie are friends but Harold does not find a warm welcome from the rest of Dickie’s Italian American crime family. Both Harold and Dickie are ambitions but circumstances of the times are frustrating Harold’s ambitions.

THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK is an ensemble film that blends many story lines as it weaves a picture of its times and the world young Tony Soprano is growing up in. Yet, the film is very cohesive, never losing us as it brings the various thread together, thanks to the well-crafted script. We are kept on the edge of our seats by every unseen turn in the plot but the film effectively mixes family drama and psychological character studies with crime film action and violence.

The crime family is on the verge of change and all their maneuvering is set against the changes and upheaval of Newark in the 1960s, particularly the race riots of the summer of 1967. The time period allows the introduction of a subplot about Harold McBrayer, played marvelously by Leslie Odom Jr., and an emerging Black crime syndicate. Early on, McBrayer’s experience with the Italian Americans parallels the path of Jewish and Irish mobsters in an earlier era, but the changing social and racial landscape alters that path and deepen the story.

Racial tensions are a big part of the story, not just historical backdrop, and some pivotal scenes take place during the summer 1967 Newark riots, which set large parts of the city aflame. In 1967, Newark is undergoing changes, as migration from the South brings increasing numbers of Black people into its working-class Central and North Wards, neighborhoods once dominated by Italian immigrants, cause clashes. The summer of 1967, the Summer of Love, sees the explosion of race riots, setting large portions of the city on fire, as changing times roil this branch of the DiMeo crime family.

Like the original show, the casting is superb, the characters striking, and the clever script provides drama, humor and mob thrills in satisfying measures. As Dickie Moltisanti, Alessandro Nivola is superb as a man torn by maintaining the smooth veneer of his family persona and coping with burning ambitions to discover his own path. All the characters in this tale are complex and multi-layered, chief among them this central one. Leslie Odom Jr has the character, Harold, who undergoes perhaps the greatest shift, and Odom handles the role masterfully.

Two of the most pivotal roles go to Ray Liotta, who plays both boss “Hollywood Dick” Moltisanti, a flashy, egotistical character with a short fuse, and his imprisoned brother Salvatore “Sally” Moltisanti, a looming figure who has embraced jazz, Buddhism and honesty in prison while still maintaining the requisite mob silence. A standout on the comedic side is John Magaro as the younger balding consiglieri Silvio Dante (played memorably in the original by Steven Van Zandt) – before the wig. The gifted John Magaro (who really should have been nominated for an Oscar for his moving performance as Cookie in last year’s unjustly-overlooked FIRST COW) is both delightful and unrecognizable in this role, capturing Silvio’s vanity and distinctive mannerisms while missing none of his underlying menace.

A standout on the drama, and psychological, side is Vera Farmiga’s performance as Tony’s troubled mother Livia, a role played so masterfully by Nancy Marchand in the original and matched here in intensity by Farmiga. Corey Stoll likewise shines as Junior, a character we meet in his dotage in the series but here a conniving striver with a penchant for accidents. Tony’s associates Paulie “Walnuts” Gualtieri, played by Billy Magnussen and Sal “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero, played by Samson Moeakiola in his screen debut, are also well-drawn and help craft that evolving Soprano world. Italian actress Michela De Rossi plays Hollywood Dick’s much younger Italian trophy wife, a figure that evokes thoughts of THE GODFATHER in a different form.

Shot on location in New Jersey and New York, the film also perfectly captures the period look and feel, with portions of Patterson and other New Jersey towns along with areas of the Bronx, Yonkers and other parts of New York standing in for an earlier Newark. While the mobsters are playing out their operatic dealings, the landscape around them is in flames. The camera work is breathtaking and the framing of the crime family dealings against the historic backdrop is stunningly jarring. All the costumes and props are properly vintage but so are the mannerisms, the racist undercurrents, and sense of seismic shift at work. Period music individually suited to each character compliments each scene.

Whether you are a fan of The Sopranos or never saw an episode, THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK delivers as a satisfying experience, a crime tale set in a volatile period, packed with depth, striking characters, drama and action, sprinkled with sly humor and crackling dialog.

THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK opens Friday, Oct. 1, in theaters nationally.

RATING: 4 out of 4 stars

THE KITCHEN – Review

(L-R) ELISABETH MOSS as Claire, TIFFANY HADDISH as Ruby and MELISSA McCARTHY as Kathy in New Line Cinema’s mob drama “The Kitchen,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa. © 2019 WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT INC

You’ll want to stay out of THE KITCHEN, not due to the heat but because of the stink. THE KITCHEN had all the right ingredients for a good crime thriller: a cast including Melissa McCarthy, Tiffany Haddish, Elizabeth Moss, Domhnall Gleeson, Margo Martindale, and Common, a setting in the 1970s in New York’s gritty Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood, and a femme-centric crime thriller premise about the wives of criminals taking to crime themselves when their husbands are no longer there to provide financial support. Yet is takes all that and turns it into a true stinker.

THE KITCHEN is based on a DC comic but the premise sounds rather like the top-notch 2018 neo-noir WIDOWS, which was inspired by a hit British TV show. Still, a good script could make that work.

If only THE KITCHEN had a good script, which it does not. Nor much sense at all. THE KITCHEN throws in every possible crime thriller cliche as well as bits and pieces from other films. The result is a big stinky mess, like a days-old pile of dirty dishes left in the sink.

Of course, this is not the first film to waste a talented cast on a lousy script but it seems particularly egregious in this case, with a fine cast lead by gifted women. Andrea Berloff’s direction helps little but the heroic efforts of the actors are sometimes surprisingly effective in individual scenes. Still, those moments are not enough to rescue this film from its dreadfully nonsensical script. This film could have been so good, but sadly it’s not even close.

Kathy (Melissa McCarthy), Ruby (Tiffany Haddish) and Claire (Elizabeth Moss) are the passive wives of some low-level criminals who get caught during robbery, and are sentenced to prison. While their husbands are locked up, the Irish-American crime gang that Ruby’s husband Kevin (James Badge Dale) heads is supposed provide financial support, but that turns out to be meager. Maybe that is due to the low opinion Ruby’s crime boss mother-in-law Helen (Margo Martindale) holds of the three wives.

It’s the 1970s, so these women all start out as timid housewives. Melissa McCarthy’s character Kathy is a classic stay-at-home mom, who seems happy to just be supportive of her beloved husband Jimmy (Brian d’Arcy James). Her character has the best marriage in the trio, with Ruby under the thumb of her mother-in-law, who resents her for being African American instead of Irish-American. Elizabeth Moss’ Claire who is abused by her violent husband Rob (Jeremy Bobb). The cast is rounded out by Domhnall Gleeson as Gabriel, a one-time hit-man for the gang with a romantic thing for Claire, and Common as one of a team of FBI agents keeping tabs on the gang.

Not surprisingly, when these downtrodden women find themselves in dire financial straits, they decide to rebel against their expected roles – remember this is the ’70s – and take up crime themselves. They decide to take control of the gang, or at least take over the protection racket from the men in the gang.

This proves surprisingly easy to do, so much so that the audience might wonder if the film is going to go in a lighter, more comedic direction. Until the killing starts. Weirdly, these women who start out so timid in speaking up to men or challenging their male authority seem not at all squeamish about killing off anyone standing in their way, not just fellow criminals but ordinary citizens.

After they dismember a body in a bathtub, there is no going back to a lighter tone, yet THE KITCHEN seems to want to do just that, as if these women were just partners in a bakeshop or other legit business. McCarthy’s character even cites the “good they have done for the community” in one unsettling scene, as if all the killing escaped her attention. Besides the disconnect in tone – violent crime thriller alternating with romance and female buddy picture – the film is packed with crime movie cliches, idiotic dialog, nonsensical plot twists and inconsistent characters. The film just keeps digging the hole deeper, until it buries itself in derivative muck.

It is a shame to waste this wonderful cast on this mess of a movie. If only the filmmakers had decided to add a real script, they might have had something, instead of wasting the audience’s time and money.

RATING: 1 out of 4 stars

THE WANNABE – The Review

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It’s rare that I find myself questioning the judgement of Martin Scorsese, but after having seen THE WANNABE, which he co-executive produced with Dean Devlin, it’s inevitable, even if it is short-lived. Directed by Nick Sandow, the film tells the story of Tom & Rose, an ambitious couple, but not well endowed with common sense or street smarts. The film is based upon real-life events that occurred around the trial of mafia boss John Gotti, an unusual case of celebrity obsession, if you will.

THE WANNABE, as silly as the title sounds, is just that. It’s the story of a social outcast who dreams of being a big-shot gangster and tried very hard in his own, pathetic way, to make those dreams a reality, when all it really accomplishes is chaos, death and destruction. On it’s own, this is a fairly generic, albeit not poorly made movie of average entertainment value. The film’s not bad, but it’s also not great. The performances are acceptable, but not inspiring. The direction and technical production are perfectly reasonable examples of what we’ve come to expect from a run-of-the-mill niche genre film such as this is, but there’s nothing that stands up and screams for our attention as a unique cinematic experience.

Tom, played by Vincent Piazza, is the brother of an Italian-American florist names Alphonse, played by Michael Imperioli, but Tom has his sights on a bigger, brighter future for himself. Every ounce of Tom’s being is fixated on John Gotti and the events unfolding as he awaiting judgement by the federal government trying him on charges related to organized crime. Indirectly, Gotti has holds influence over Tom, as a type of mentor or paternal figure.

Tom’s affection for Gotti is unwelcome and discouraged by the gangsters who disowned him and unnoticed by pretty much everyone else. My primary complaint about Piazza’s portrayal is that he’s too desperate, too needy, too pathetic. It’s difficult to imagine he managed to succeed on the relatively small and unimpressive level that he did. Piazza’s Tom feels like an exaggeration of the real-life character that must have been.

Tom is a good guy, but his delusion have misled him down a dark and unforgiving path of misguided hopes and dreams, which in turn lead to an equally dark and unfortunate path when his dreams don’t pan out and he takes the outlaw life into his and Rosie’s own hands without the necessary means to do so intelligently. In short, Tom & Rosie feel like entries in the World’s Dumbest Criminals collection, but we want them to be more like Robin Hood and Maid Marian.

Rose, played by Patricia Arquette, is a slightly older Italian-American woman with a similar mindset and tendency to habitualize drugs as Tom. Arquette’s portrayal of Rose appears to be more of a stereotypical manifestation of the character type than anything truly original or [hopefully] anything truthful to the real person on which the character is based. As a result, it becomes difficult to connect to Rose’s struggle and accept her as anything more than a tragic sidekick or accidental accomplice.

THE WANNABE’s biggest flaw, in my opinion, is that it double dips into source material that’s already been used too recently to justify another film. As they say, nobody wants sloppy seconds, but that’s what we end up with here in Sandow’s film. While other similar films may glamorize the lawlessness and violence, this film accentuates the ignorance of it’s central characters, or let’s just say it… it feeds off of the implied stupidity and festers within that notion, resulting in a two-dimensional cartoon that captures only a portion of the complete human being.

Ultimately, this movie feels like a tabloid version of the story, versus taking a more authentic, realistic approach to two actual human lives that, for better or for worse, made the decisions they made that led to the foreseeable consequences, all of which are predictable and written in modern history, but the audience loses out on what could have been a detailed character study with depth and detail.

In 2014, director Raymond De Felitta released his version of the same real-life story titled ROB THE MOB, a far superior interpretation and much more entertaining film than this, but it’s unfair to make such a comparison. So, I’ll do my best to consider THE WANNABE on it’s own merits and, if you’d like to read my review of ROB THE MOB [despite the equally cheesy title], you can do so here.

THE WANNABE opens in theaters on Friday, December 4th, 2015.

Overall rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

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DRIVE – The Review

Nicolas Winding Refn’s DRIVE is simply perfect. Not since Michael Mann’s 1981 crime drama THIEF, has a film of this type had such an impact, and dare I say DRIVE is even better? Yes, I do. Every woman’s newest sweetheart, Ryan Gosling (CRAZY STUPID LOVE) is Driver, a nameless Hollywood stuntman who moonlights as a getaway driver. He lives simply, adhering to a strict set of rules, which keeps him at the top of his game, out of prison… and alive. On the surface, he’s a pretty boy with a quiet disposition, but hidden within is a strong, efficient survivor with the capacity to be brutal when necessary.

Working as a mechanic for Shannon, played by Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston, the two men hold a partnership that handles the criminal side jobs. When Shannon approaches former motion picture producer turned organized crime boss Bernie Rose (Albert Brooks) about a loan to get his driver behind the wheel of a stock car to race professionally, it marks the beginning of a downward spiral for both men. Shortly thereafter, the driver meets Irene (Carey Mulligan) and her son Benicio (Kaden Leos). This is the moment everything changes for the driver.

DRIVE is adapted from James Sallis’ book by Hossein Amini (THE FOUR FEATHERS, KILLSHOT) and directed by Nicolas Winding Refn, a young auteur whose previous films (BRANSON, VALHALLA RISING) have cemented him on my radar of filmmakers to watch like a hawk. The story takes place in the ‘90s, an era not generally known for any memorable, defining nostalgia. Despite this, Refn somehow creates his own nostalgia in which to place the driver, a loner but likable anti-hero. Sporting a pearling white windbreaker with a golden scorpion embroidered on the back, the driver walks with a subtle, unassuming confidence, seemingly invisible to the public eye.

This apparent invisibility is not a chance occurrence. Whatever his training, whatever his life experience up to now, the driver is clearly in control of every aspect of his life, until he meets Irene. Falling almost instantly for her, and bonding as quickly to her son Benicio, the driver takes on a role of responsibility for them. This becomes undeniably crucial when Irene’s past returns to throw everything in jeopardy. Jeopardy is another name for two men; Bernie Rose and Nino, played by veteran character actor Ron Perlman (HELLBOY). One of my personal favorites, Perlman delivers precisely the level of creepy charisma I’ve come to expect, and it works marvelously.

The truly astounding performance in DRIVE however, is Albert Brooks (THE MUSE, DEFENDING YOUR LIFE). Refn has managed to work with Brooks to take every ounce of what makes him such a unique comical character and flips him, fully converted to the dark side. Intelligent, witty and sharp-tongued, Brooks finds that elusive something that equates to a memorably unnerving villain, a bad guy the audience has difficulty disliking. Hands down, Brooks delivers one of the best performances from any supporting actor of 2011.

Ryan Gosling, an actor on the fast lane to greatness, has given audiences stellar work in HALF-NELSON, LARS AND THE REAL GIRL, and BLUE VALENTINE. Unfortunately, he’s probably best known for the lesser quality films he’s done, but has still managed to stand out as the beacon amidst foggier films. Gosling’s performance is quiet, solemn and meticulously paced, much like the film itself. DRIVE is a slowly building roller coaster of tension, the type that takes 90% of its time gradually ratcheting the audience up to the tip top of the incline, before finally letting loose for the final 10% sending the audience into a sudden free-fall, landing firmly within a cushion of existential epiphany.

Carey Mulligan (AN EDUCATION, NEVER LET ME GO) is almost too cute and adorable to imagine in such a film, has offered audiences far more defining performances. For the role of Irene, she succeeds at being a means to an end for the driver’s character development, remaining just within his shadow, but giving us more than enough reason to believe she is the catalyst for the driver’s shift in purpose. In the first act of DRIVE, Gosling and Mulligan build a fascinating chemistry with barely enough dialogue to fill a single page of script.

This silence is a multifaceted thematic element that runs throughout the film. The atmospheric score from Cliff Martinez (THE LINCOLN LAWYER, CONTAGION) is alluring and gentle, but with an edge, occasionally rising to the surface just enough to grab the viewer by the throat as if to squeeze gently, reminding us of the pending danger the driver willing chooses to face head on for the sake of a woman he barely knows. Newton Thomas Sigel provides the cinematography, but is clearly channeling Refn’s visual flair. DRIVE is filled with softly contoured contrast and deep, saturated color woven seamlessly into the shadows to the point of being a subconscious afterthought.

The palette of DRIVE is not unlike that of BRONSON, but inverted from the hyper-intense into more of an ultra-mellow version of itself. More importantly, Refn continues to play with the visual canvas as a storytelling medium, relying less with each film on the traditional dialogue-driven approach, constructing shots and scenes that may have made Hitchcock raise an eyebrow. The care given to composition of frame, to every moment and measure of camera movement, allows Refn to strengthen the impact of his story on the viewer without exposing his presence. This is particularly true in the final moments of the final act, when the driver confronts his villain. Refn creatively conceals details, forcing the audience to inch up to the very edge of their seats, patiently but anxiously.

DRIVE offers all this, but still engages the viewer in the dirty underbelly of the criminal world. Without being overly flashy, Refn incorporates some of the best car chase sequences in recent years. The kind of high speed, articulate stunt driving that has the crowd in awe. As for myself, I had to fight the urge to replicate the driving as I left the theater. It’s that infectious. Likewise, Refn does not hold back on the violence, displaying key moments of passionate brutality, but only when the driver is cornered, like an angry badger defending its young. DRIVE is an R-rated film at heart, but only in the sense that it’s a mature, honest portrayal of a side of society most of us never experience outside of cinema. DRIVE has a few subdued moments of humor, most of which are presented by Albert Brooks, but ultimately proves to be an exemplary achievement as a film from a director as comfortable with style as he is with the actors, resulting in what I consider to be the best film of 2011.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 stars