Killing Them Softly

Killing Them Softly - Dir. Andrew Dominik (2012)

"You ever kill anyone? They get touchy-feely, emotional, a lot of fuss. They either plead or beg. They call for their mothers. I like to kill 'em softly…from a distance."

As the old saying goes, "Never judge a book by its cover." So it goes with Killing Them Softly, a film seemingly depicted by the trailers as an action-packed crime thriller. Comparing it to a John Woo movie, would be like comparing Drive to The Fast and the Furious. Killing Them Softly is arthouse noir masquerading as typical multiplex fare.

Killing Them Softly is written and directed by Andrew Dominik whose previous film was The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, a hauntingly beautiful picture that had more in common with Terrence Malick than the average shoot 'em up Western. Dominik's latest work is based on the 1974 novel, Cogan's Trade, by George V. Higgins, who stands alongside Dennis Lehane as one of the preeminent authors of Boston crime fiction. The only other book by Higgins that has been translated to cinema is The Friends of Eddie Coyle, a cult classic of gritty 70's cinema with Robert Mitchum perfectly cast in the title role of a low-level crook forced to turn informant to avoid prison.

The stylish dialogue remains largely intact, but Dominik has moved the story to a post-Katrina New Orleans in 2008. Obama, Bush, and John McCain serve as a Greek chorus as excerpts of their speeches about the financial collapse, the massive bailouts, and the murky future of the country play throughout the movie. Dominik sets the stage with a jarring opening as audio of then-Senator Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention is intercut with distorted feedback. A lone figure walks through the desolate streets as litter floats around him. The final images are side-by-side billboards of the presidential candidates and their photogenic smiles as they survey the ruined kingdom they hope will be their prize. It's a prologue that feels ripped out of an experimental film.

From there, Killing Them Softly cuts to a more conventional scene as Johnny Amato aka Squirrel (Vincent Curatola) hires two crooks, Frankie (Scoot McNairy) and his drug-addled friend Russell (Ben Mendelsohn), to knock over a high-stakes poker game for mobsters. The clandestine games are run by Markie Trattman (Ray Liotta), who actually robbed one of his games years ago. No one could prove he did it though he later drunkenly bragged about pulling the job, yet his bosses still gave him a pass. Johnny knows that if the game is robbed again, it will be Markie who falls immediately under suspicion. This is where Jackie Cogan (Brad Pitt) enters the story (after almost half an hour) in grand fashion, snorting cigarette smoke and driving a classic town car to the tune of "The Man Comes Around" by Johnny Cash. Cogan is hired to track down the thieves and deal with them in his own indomitable manner.

Dominik incessantly hammers home the idea that the entire film is a parable for the economic crisis and that there is little difference between the financial sector and organized crime. The heads of the mafia are never seen and only represented by Richard Jenkins as a middle management suit exasperated by the corporate structure he's entrenched in. Only in this corporate structure could Trattman be allowed to steal from his own company and be placed in a position where he could do so again. Cogan himself is surrounded by incompetent underlings and indecisive superiors. They move about in a world where everyone makes their money by gambling, stealing, and scamming from one another. It's a world where loyalty is an inconvenience when it comes to saving your own ass. It's a thoroughly masculine world too with the only female character in the movie being a prostitute.

Then, there's New York Mickey (James Gandolfini) who could be seen as a thinly veiled representation of the SEC or any other ineffectual watchdog committee. Mickey is a renowned enforcer brought in by Cogan to assist in the murder of Johnny Amato. Much to Cogan's dismay, Mickey has become a bitter shell of his former self. Mickey drowns his self-pity with booze and hookers as he bemoans his shattered marriage and an impending prison sentence.

Buried underneath the ham-fisted political rhetoric is a compelling film yearning to breathe. The dialogue crackles and the performances are strong. Pitt moves across the screen with an effortless swagger wrapped in a black leather coat. The scenes he shares with Gandolfini are some of the best in the movie though they could have been excised entirely with no impact to the rest of the narrative. They exist as if they were separate one-act plays written by David Mamet. Gandolfini initially turned the part down due to its similarities to Tony Soprano. Gandolfini isn't the only one typecast as a gangster, there's also Ray Liotta and Vincent Curatola, another Sopranos alum. You can easily see Soprano, Henry Hill, and Johnny Sack slowly turning into these pathetic wrecks. However, their roles feel short changed, not surprising since Dominik edited the picture from an early two and a half hour cut to 97 minutes. One supporting standout is Ben Mendelsohn, an Aussie actor used to portraying scumbags. He recently popped up as a ruthless executive in The Dark Knight Rises, but first gained notice as the psychotic Pope in Animal Kingdom. As Russell, Mendelsohn is the definition of sleazy so much so you'll want to take a shower after watching him. He's constantly caked in a layer of sweat and dresses like a disheveled hobo. Sam Shepard appears in one scene as an enforcer named Dillon, who was superbly played by Peter Boyle in the aforementioned Friends of Eddie Coyle.

Anyone who has seen Assassination of Jesse James knows Dominik is capable of crafting gorgeous imagery. Killing Them Softly is no exception as Dominik stages sequences that are both poetic and violent. There's a brutal beatdown soaked in rain, blood, and vomit. Later, a shooting occurs in slow motion as a bullet exits a man's skull as beads of water and broken glass swim in a sea of crimson red. When Russell does heroin, Dominik uses a trippy first person perspective reminiscent of Gaspar Noé's interminable Enter the Void. The soundtrack selection is just as on the nose as Dominik's message with "Heroin" by Velvet Underground scoring the scene and Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)" over the end credits.

"I'm living in America and in America you're on your own. America's not a country, it's a business. Now fuckin' pay me."

That final line, delivered by Pitt as a cynical response to Obama's hopeful inaugural address, encapsulates Dominik's themes more succinctly than the heavy handed method he employs. It may be amusing to imagine a criminal underworld that subsists solely on a steady stream of C-SPAN and NPR, Killing Them Softly would have been better served with the same distanced approach used by its protagonist.

Rating: ** ½ (*****)

In the Loop

In the Loop - Dir. Armando Iannucci (2009)


Filmmakers have found a wealth of story material in these politically charged times. Most of these films haven’t been shy about shoving their message (right or left-wing) down our throats. There isn’t much subtlety going on in In the Loop, but it’s one of the best political satires in recent memory. It’s sharply written and impeccably performed. Writer/director Armando Iannucci created the hit BBC series The Thick of It, think The West Wing by way of The Office. In the Loop is essentially a spin-off shot in a documentary-style that turns the audience into a fly on the wall for the Machiavellian machinations of politicos.

The film begins with Simon Foster (Tom Hollander), a Minister for International Development, though I have no idea what that entails. In fact, most of characters have similarly obtuse titles that don’t give us a single clue as to exactly what the Hell they do. Anyways, during a radio interview Foster calls the looming war in the Middle East “unforeseeable.” This opens a Pandora’s Box as Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi), the British Prime Minister’s Director of Communication, storms into Foster’s office ready to bite everyone’s heads off. Tucker is a perpetually angry individual with a short fuse and no off switch, constantly launching into profanity-laced tirades. Tucker demands Foster keep his mouth shut and “tow the line.” But, Foster continues to put his foot in his mouth when he announces, we must “climb the mountain of conflict.” His inane rambling is quickly turned into a catchphrase for one of those ridiculous motivation posters.

In way over his head, Foster is invited to Washington, D.C., where members of both sides of the war debate hope to use him as a pawn in their game. Poor Simon is considered nothing more than "meat" in the room. Assistant Secretary of State Karen Clarke (Mimi Kennedy) and Lt. General Miller (James Gandolfini) are the flag bearers for the anti-war movement. Clarke’s assistant Liza Weld (Anna Chlumsky) has written a detailed report on the cons on going to war. The pro side is led by Linton Barwick (David Rasche), a thinly-veiled Donald Rumsfeld, who hides his war committee behind the intentionally vague and bland title of the Future Planning Committee. Back home, Foster’s career takes a beating when a man (Steve Coogan) complains that the wall of Foster’s headquarters is crumbling into his mother’s rose garden. Ah, delicious irony.

While the debate on war is a primary aspect of the film, we never actually hear anyone debating the actual issues or logistics. The politicians are far more concerned with backstabbing and spin doctoring. The plot is rather thin, but it’s the dialogue that is the film’s centerpiece. The lines are hilarious and unapologetically vulgar. A running gag in the script is the exceptional youth of the staff assistants, the real foot soldiers in Capitol Hill. One character notes, ”…it’s like Bugsy Malone, but with real guns.” I couldn’t help but chuckle out loud when one of Foster’s staffers, the nerdy bespectacled Toby (Chris Addison) is constantly referred to by names like Ron Weasley and Frodo. In the Loop is easily one of the best films of the year.

Rating: *** 1/2

Where the Wild Things Are

Where the Wild Things Are - Dir. Spike Jonze (2009)


”Let the wild rumpus start!”

Sorry, but Where the Wild Things Are was never a huge part of my childhood. In fact, I only just read it the other day. Honestly, I waited until after I saw the film to check it out from the library. Still, I approached the film adaptation with some trepidation. It’s always difficult to translate these classic children’s books, particularly when they’re only a dozen or so pages long. Filmmakers tend to pad out the film’s length with lowbrow humor and mugging lead actors. Look at what they did to poor Dr. Seuss. Thankfully, Spike Jonze has stayed true to the spirit of Maurice Sendak’s much-beloved book. Jonze’s Where the Wild Things Are is a soulful, intelligent meditation on the difficulties of childhood. It is a refreshing change from the sugar-coated junk food that passes as family entertainment these days.

Max (Max Records) gets crushed within his snow fort by his sister’s friends while she stands by and does nothing. His mother (Catherine Keener) ignores him in order to spend time with her boyfriend (Mark Ruffalo). Max dons his iconic wolf costume and stomps on the kitchen counter, demanding to be fed. His tantrum culminates in Max biting his mother. The boy runs away from home and finds a tiny sailboat which allows him to travel to an island inhabited by the Wild Things each representing a different aspect of Max’s psyche.

The de facto leader of the monsters is Carol (James Gandolfini), the most temperamental of the creatures and quickest to anger. Max and Carol bond quickly over their shared passion of feral destruction. Carol is constantly at odds with K.W. (Lauren Ambrose) who had briefly left to be on her own. There’s the easy-going Ira (Forest Whitaker) and his girlfriend, the somewhat domineering Judith (Catherine O’Hara). The other Wild Things are: Carol’s right hand man, the avian-esque Douglas (Chris Cooper); low self-esteem sufferer Alexander (Paul Dano); and the taciturn and intimidating Bull (Michael Berry Jr.).

Max’s time with the Wild Things is marked with mischief, adventure, and sorrow. The monsters are sensitive, but it’s never forgotten that they could eat Max with no hesitation. The work gone into creating the Wild Things is simply wonderful, suits from the Jim Henson Company enhanced with CGI. This is where the film truly begins and happens. The opening act is a nice touch, but it isn’t as if it were necessarily to inform the audience of the difficulties of growing up. The indie hipster soundtrack by Jonze’s then-girlfriend Karen O tends to become an ill-fitting distraction at times. In the end, Jonze’s offbeat sensibilities have crafted a film that can speak to the heart of anyone, regardless of age. Where the Wild Things Are never speaks down to the audience and portrays children as the complex creatures they are.

Rating: ***

The Taking of Pelham 123

The Taking of Pelham 123 - Dir. Tony Scott (2009)

This new version of The Taking of Pelham 123 is nominally a remake of the 1974 film starring Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw. That version itself was originally based on a novel by John Godey and the story was remade previously in 1998 as a made-for-TV film with Edward James Olmos and Vincent D’Onofrio. The basic premise of a thief hijacking a subway train remains the same, but the 2009 version tosses in a lot of flash while incorporating current technology and life in a post-9/11 New York.

Denzel Washington is Walter Garber, a former bigshot with the NYC Municipal Transit Authority, but a fall from grace reduces him to a desk job as a dispatcher. It’s just bad luck that he’s on the line when Ryder (John Travolta) and his gang hijack a subway train and demand $10 million dollars from the Mayor (James Gandolfini). In the original, the gang use color-coordinated code-names like Mr, Blue and Mr. Green which would Tarantino would pay homage to in Reservoir Dogs. Die Hard underground. That’s essentially the entire plot in a nutshell. There aren’t a whole lot of nuances to it.

Even stuck behind a desk, Denzel still possesses a commanding on-screen presence. What works for the film is the fact that his Garber is not a standard action hero. He’s not a cop, just a former white-collar executive. For the most part, Garber’s interactions with Ryder are over the radio as they play mind games with each other while revealing bits and pieces of their past. What doesn’t work is the third act when they turn Garber into the gun-toting action man. While Denzel gives a strong, but restrained performance, Travolta gives an over-the-top, cartoonish performance. Travolta dons a knit skullcap, Fu Manchu-esque mustache, and tattoos in a failed attempt to look menacing. He screams at the top of his lungs and drops F-bombs for every other word because he’s crazy. That’s what crazy people do after all, kill innocent people and call them ‘motherfuckers.’

Any semblance of tension or drama is stripped away by Tony Scott’s predilections for frenetic camera work. His films for the last several years for have been oversaturated with superfluous camera movements, editing tricks, and bleached out colors. Pelham 123 is downright restrained when compared to Domino, but Scott still fails to realize whip pans and MTV trickery can never replace good, solid storytelling.

Rating: **