Hey gang,
September 23rd is the first day of Fall, my personal favourite season. The weather is nice (usually), Halloween is just over a month away and the Fall movies have begun to roll out. This is the time of year when we see films with a little grit to match the death of summer and earlier sunsets. Many of these September, October and November movies aren't fit for the blockbuster season, however they are often very good and even Oscar-worthy in some cases. The darker season brings one of my favourite sub-genres out of hiding, and that is the crime and gangster drama.
I enjoy crime and gangster films because they present a very real world that most viewers are unfamiliar with. I think I speak for a lot of us when I say that I am not involved in an violent crime or any crime for that matter. Watching a gangster movie provides a small glimpse into the mysterious and dangerous world of organized crime, no matter how fantastical. The characters and their actions may seem foreign, but they are presented in a time and place that we recognize, like London or Boston. It truly is an underworld that reaches the surface where we all walk each day. Crime thrillers make for intriguing films because they deliver a taboo version of humanity and urban life.
Two major films in this category are Legend and Black Mass. Those in the UK have already been treated to Tom Hardy and Tom Hardy as the notorious Kray Brothers, and I was fortunate enough to be in London for its September 9th release. If you are in North America you can look forward to catching Legend on October 2nd in wide release. Black Mass features Johnny Depp as Boston kingpin James "Whitey" Bulger alongside a deep cast including the likes of Benedict Cumberbatch and Joel Edgerton.
I'd like to tell you about these films and what I think of them, but I feel it is necessary that I do not wish to convey the notion that I know anything about the Krays or Bulger in their respective careers and film representations. I know that there were some liberties taken for the sake of story in both cases, and I would prefer to steer clear of legitimacy and history for the sake of the review.
First things first, Legend is based on the biographical book The Profession of Violence by John Pearson, which chronicles the criminal careers of Reggie and Ronnie Kray in London, England during the 1950s and 1960s. Writer/director Brian Helgeland (A Knight's Tale, 42) tackled the depiction of twins Reggie and Ronnie Kray portrayed by Tom Hardy on both counts. Other cast members include Emily Browning as Reggie's wife Frances Shea, the "ninth Doctor" Christopher Eccleston as Detective Superintendent Leonard "Nipper" Read, David Thewlis as Leslie Payne and (always a pleasure) Taron Egerton as Edward "Mad Teddy" Smith.
We've seen a lot of films in the last couple of years that heavily feature twin-effects such as Jesse Eisenberg's Simon and James in The Double and Jake Gyllenhaal's Adam and Anthony in Enemy. Neither of those films were very exceptional, however the technology has proven to work well enough to suspend the disbelief of having the same actor play two roles in one film where they appear on-screen simultaneously. Tom Hardy's performances as both Reggie and Ronnie Kray are memorably diverse, and this does not come as a surprise given that he has made a career from his ability to transform for roles and play a wide range of characters. Hardy shines in both roles for different reasons. Reggie is the more level-headed of the two, despite that speaking more to the unpredictable nature of Ronnie. Ronnie's mental health keeps his actions exaggerated and twitchy, contrasting to the methodical mind (however, violent) of Reggie. Their relationship is strained at best, and the film is strongest when pitting the twins against each other's business perspectives as they attempt to climb higher in the London nightlife and casino business. Hardy keeps his portrayals of Reggie and Ronnie distant enough in appearance and mannerisms in order to differentiate the characteristics of the twins, but he maintains a constant familial connection that supports the film's goal. No matter where the Krays' criminal actions and legitimate careers take them, neither of the twins can permanently turn on the other. At the core of Legend, it is the actions they take to relieve the stress of their brotherly ties that holds the plot together.
Legend's pacing is so clean and fast in the first half of the film that it sets the end of the second act up to fail. There is a lull in the story, however necessary to establish a believable relationship between Reggie and Frances, that takes the audience out of the film for a brief period. However, the smallest set pieces of character development seen throughout Reggie's story reaches a thrilling climax and delivers some of the more violent actions that the film ultimately lacks elsewhere. Legend is an entertaining redirect of a crime thriller that boasts a solid central cast, quick wit and some good laughs amidst the heavy and depressing result of questionable but unconditional loyalty in the lives of violent criminals. Check it out, even if its just to see Tom Hardy totally kill it.
Black Mass, directed by Scott Cooper (Crazy Heart, Out of the Furnace) is a whole other deal. Sure, it's still a crime drama, but it's not the same vibrant story that most of Legend manages to be. There's really no one to like in Black Mass; even the good guys are either corrupt or unforgiving. Johnny Depp's Whitey Bulger is unsettling and ruthless. There's something about the blue contact lenses, the dead tooth and the muttering of his lines that makes him seem like he's perpetually teetering on the line between sanity and psychopathic rage. Joel Edgerton's John Connolly may be an FBI agent out to take down the mafia in North Boston, but he's still a Southie kid like Whitey and his senator brother Billy Bulger played by Benedict Cumberbatch (complete with convincing Boston accent!). It's hard to believe Jesse Plemons could play a slimier character than Breaking Bad's Todd Alquist, but he ups the ante as Kevin Weeks, the young enforcer who earned the respect of Whitey in the 1970s, only to turn on him for a lesser sentence.
Black Mass isn't your typical Hollywood gangster movie. It's really a large character study of a crimelord-turned-FBI-informant, his weak-moraled FBI insider and those who choose to associate with them both as they experience mutual gain and the resulting steep decline. You watch as the two sides give and take information, money and loyalty, building a relationship that blurs the line between the law enforcer and the criminal. The more comfortable these two sides become with each other, the larger steps they are willing to take to bolster their income. The higher the stakes, the greater the risk, the larger the reward. Black Mass establishes the true balance between this large reward and irredeemable fall. It also dives deep into the relationship between the legitimate and the criminal and how such associations can be beneficial as well as manipulatable by either party. Black Mass doesn't have a climactic ending with guns blazing, blood flying and dramatic deserving deaths. However, the film does deliver what's coming to Whitey Bulger and his associates as their livelihoods are cast aside and their reputations ruined.
Black Mass is really good. It's not for everyone, but it does have some excellent performances. I don't have a strong opinion of Johnny Depp in either direction, but he sure does achieve an air of unease as Whitey Bulger and I'm sure that was his intention.
The Fall is an exciting time for movie-goers who want to take a break from the overstimulating action movies of the summer that draw massive crowds. I recommend both Legend and Black Mass for fans of the crime/gangster sub-genre. There are a few other films due out in the next two months that are sure to be worthy a watch. The Martian, directed by Ridley Scott and starring Matt Damon, is a highly realistic science fiction film based on Andy Weir's stellar novel of the same name. Those who thought Interstellar was a little too much of a stretch for their comprehension and imagination may enjoy the grounded nature of this thrilling adventure story that finds its footing in the real physics, out October 2nd. On the same day, you can catch Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin and Benicio del Toro in Sicario, another crime thriller about a joint task force cracking down on a Mexican drug lord. A few other titles to look out for are Steven Speilberg's Cold War thriller Bridge of Spies starring Tom Hanks, Guillermo del Toro's haunted house horror Crimson Peak, The Peanuts Movie (I'm a big fan, so yeah), Daniel Craig's Bond in Spectre, the limited release of Trumbo starring Bryan Cranston, The Hunger Games finale Mockingjay Part 2, Michael B. Jordan in Creed, and Pixar's The Good Dinosaur.
Yeah, there are more films out this fall, but many of these caught my eye. Star Wars: The Force Awakens has been left off the list because it need not share the spotlight. Its day will come on December 18th.
Take care everyone.
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