It's Coen Brothers doing1920's prohibition, so it's stylish, dark, great music, class photography, violent in places, the hero is no angel, the cops are corrupt, the cast is having a ball, great set pieces, and the story is strong. Once the story eventually gets going, that is.
Second time I watched this I knew I had to concentrate from the start, and that helped. Tom Reagan (Gabriel Byrne) is a Chicago/Irish consigliere to Albert Finney's town capo di tutti capi. Verna (Marcia Gay Harden) is the love interest of both of them, and really, hers is the only sympathetic character, though very thinly written. Gabriel Byrne plays Irish-super-cool-dishy for all it's worth, but the character is neither hero nor antihero, which may be the intention, and it doesn't really work. The ending kind of fits, though.
Anyway (SPOILER) Tom switches allegiance (or does he?) to preserve whatever he's got going with Verna, but it takes a full hour to establish all the dynamics. If you concentrate up to then, the whole tension of the story becomes apparent, but they certainly made heavy going of it. I mean, I've now watched it twice and I'm still not certain how Steve Buscemi ended up where he did, and why it mattered.
Slow, confusing build up to a worthwhile ending, but thin characters.
Second time I watched this I knew I had to concentrate from the start, and that helped. Tom Reagan (Gabriel Byrne) is a Chicago/Irish consigliere to Albert Finney's town capo di tutti capi. Verna (Marcia Gay Harden) is the love interest of both of them, and really, hers is the only sympathetic character, though very thinly written. Gabriel Byrne plays Irish-super-cool-dishy for all it's worth, but the character is neither hero nor antihero, which may be the intention, and it doesn't really work. The ending kind of fits, though.
Anyway (SPOILER) Tom switches allegiance (or does he?) to preserve whatever he's got going with Verna, but it takes a full hour to establish all the dynamics. If you concentrate up to then, the whole tension of the story becomes apparent, but they certainly made heavy going of it. I mean, I've now watched it twice and I'm still not certain how Steve Buscemi ended up where he did, and why it mattered.
Slow, confusing build up to a worthwhile ending, but thin characters.