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Miller’s Crossing (1990)
Miller’s Crossing (1990)
The Coen brothers (Joel Coen and Ethan Coen) really started to get noticed after writing and directing Fargo (1996). The popularity of the indie writers and directors continued to increase with each movie that they made together. However, when most people look back on the Coen brothers’ career as filmmakers, they usually don’t look further back than Fargo. Miller’s Crossing seems to fall between the cracks.
I was 4 years old when this movie was released, but I watched it for the first time when I was 13 years old. It was the first Coen brothers’ movie that I had seen and it was the beginning of a new friendship.
Miller’s Crossing is a gangster film about Tom Regan (Gabriel Byrne), a heavy gambler and trusted confidant to two rival mob bosses during the 1920s. Regan finds himself caught in the middle of a power struggle and all out gangland war while trying to manipulate both sides against each other.
The movie was written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and the rest of the noteworthy cast includes Albert Finney, Jon Polito, John Turturro, Marcia Gay Harden, Steve Buscemi, J.E. Freeman, Mike Starr, Olek Krupa, and Michael Jeter.
The film is an excellent homage to the James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart gangster movies of old. The writing and directing is flawless. The Coen brothers resurrected the 1920s gangster era all the way down to the soda bottles, pocket watches, fedora hats, tommy guns, rotary phones, pinky rings, dirty coppers, smoking jackets, robes, stogies, custom three piece suits, and of course, the model T. The costumes and set designs were perfect.
The movie has an R rating, but I don’t think that rating would live up to today’s standards. There is hardly any swearing, and the sex is insinuated. There is violence, but it is not extremely graphic. One scene shows a girl topless, but she is wearing nipple tassels. As far as I’m concerned, that’s frontal side-boob. I don’t think that alone is enough to garner an R rating. In other words, the movie is basically PG-13.
My oldest brother once pointed out to me how the Coen brothers love having big guys sitting behind desks arguing or yelling at people sitting across from them. He was right. Watch almost any Coen brothers’ movie and you will get just that. I think the reason behind this is that usually the dialogue in their movies is so very well-written. An office setting is a good place to get the point across. People tend to pay more attention to you if you are behind a podium or desk, especially if you are yelling or arguing a point. Just look at Barack Obama, or Hitler. Don’t get me wrong, both men are opposites, but both men could definitely deliver a speech. As bad as Hitler was, people eat up what he said like it was candy. They did the same for Obama. Well thought out dialogue delivered to an audience with explosive vigor while standing behind a podium or desk is enough to get people to listen. It certainly has worked for the Coen brothers and Miller’s Crossing is a classic example of that.
The Coen brothers were lucky enough early on to be able to get great actors to act in their movies. This is harder to do for independent filmmakers. Miller’s Crossing is one of my favorite Gabriel Byrne films. He gives a slick performance and it must have been contagious because in my opinion, this is Albert Finney’s best movie. Marcia Gay Harden easily transforms into a 1920s dame and does a likable job. This is the first movie that I really liked John Turturro in. Jon Polito gives his best performance channeling the likes of Edward G. Robinson. Steve Buscemi spits his dialogue like a pro. It was as if J.E. Freeman was plucked right out of a 1920s gangster movie. He played his role that well. These actors have all worn many different hats. This one fit them all like it was tailor made just for them.
Like fine wine, Miller’s Crossing gets better with age. If you are a Coen brothers fan already, you will most likely enjoy this movie. It is one of my favorite Coen brothers’ movies. It’s a classy gangster film.
I rate this movie a 9 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Buy.
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013)
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013)
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone looked a little cheesy, but with Steve Carell, Jim Carrey, and Steve Buscemi in a comedy together, I knew it had to be good for at least a few laughs.
Burt Wonderstone (Steve Carell) and Anton Marvelton (Steve Buscemi) are both magicians and longtime friends. The duo has had a popular show together in Las Vegas for years. But now, a street performer (Jim Carrey) is beginning to steal their thunder with his crazy magical stunts that he is pulling off throughout the city. Wonderstone and Marvelton must try to come up with fresh new material in order to try so save their show and their friendship.
The movie was directed by Don Scardino and the rest of the notable cast includes James Gandolfini, Olivia Wilde, Alan Arkin, Jay Mohr, Brad Garrett, and David Copperfield.
I have to say, I expected more from this movie. It was in fact good for a few laughs, but that was about it. A lot of the humor was a little too dry and tacky. Many of the jokes fell short and the story was pretty predictable.
Carrey’s character was by far the funniest. His goofiness made the movie worth watching, although he was not in enough of the film.
Gandolfini played his part well in one of his final films. He will be missed.
Arkin was excellent. His character seemed genuine.
Buscemi could have been funnier.
Wilde’s character needed more screen time and Garrett should have had a bigger role.
The magic depicted in the movie was fun to watch, but the humor was very inconsistent.
Overall, the comedy superstar talent in this film was somehow neglected. If the filmmakers had made proper use of the talent that they had to work with, this movie could have been one that you laugh out loud until you cry throughout the entire film. Instead the laughs were sporadic and the movie was just a step above mediocre.
I rate this movie a 6 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Rent.
Elijah Wood Morphed into Steve Buscemi
When I first saw this picture I had to do a double-take. Doesn’t it just look like Elijah Wood has really let himself go? Or, did Steve Buscemi just start looking creepier?
I’m not sure where the picture came from, but it’s Steve Buscemi with Elijah Wood’s face.
Which actor is doing an impression of the other?
Now I would just like to see Elijah Wood with Steve Buscemi’s face. I think it would only be fair.
Trailer for Grown Ups 2 (2013)
Grown Ups 2 (2013)
Can Adam Sandler do us all a favor and stop making unwatchable garbage. He has not made a good movie for years. Arguably his best movie in the last 7 years was Just Go with It (2011) and that is not saying much. Click (2006) was probably his last good movie. The majority of the movies that he made before Click were all hilarious in their own way. After Click, all of Sandler’s movies turned into pure excrement.
Was the first Grown Ups (2010) not bad enough? Do we really need to be subjected to a sequel?
In the first Grown Ups, Adam Sandler got all of his almost washed-up, aging comedian friends together (Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade, Rob Schneider, Tim Meadows, Dan Patrick, Colin Quinn, Maya Rudolph, Blake Clark, Norm MacDonald, Jonathan Loughran, and Dennis Dugan)to make a not so funny, not very family friendly, family comedy also with the likes of Salma Hayek, Maria Bello, Steve Buscemi, and Sandler’s wife Jackie Sandler and 2 daughters Sadie Sandler and Sunny Sandler.
So now 3 years later, he brought most of them all back together again and made a sequel. Is it safe to assume that they are all actually washed-up this time since they are back for more? He had to try to top the first one, so he added Taylor Lautner, Milo Ventimiglia, Andy Samberg, David Henrie, Alexander Ludwig, Steve Austin, Taran Killam, Nick Swardson, Shaquille O’Neal, Cheri Oteri, Erin Heatherton, and Melanie Hutsell to the mix.
I can’t believe Sandler pulled it off, but this movie looks worse than the first one. I will most certainly skip this film in the theatre and I won’t even waste my money at the Redbox. It would have to be free for me to watch this, and even that will be risky.
Dennis Dugan directed both Grown Ups movies.
The trash will be picked up on, I mean the movie will release on 7/12/13.
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