I am not really a Gangster-movie/ series fanatic. It took me forever and a day to finally see The Godfather, haven't seen any of the Sopranos, etc. So I was EXTREMELY hesitant to see 'The Last Don', which came available for me to view on DVD. At 4 and ½ hours, you could say I wasn't exactly chomping at the bit to see this, especially from the very beginning, when along with Danny Aiello, the series also promised appearances by Kirstie Alley, Robert Wuhl, Penelope Ann Miller, Seymour Cassel AND kd lang! I mean, what on earth was the casting director smoking? But, despite deep reservations from the beginning, I REALLY got into this harrowing drama of the deep divisions of the Clericuzio family. Danny Aiello is simply great as the family patriarch, here, and he essentially holds all of the movie together. Rather then focusing squarely on him, the movie paces itself out wonderfully and focuses on a number of characters, namely with the De Lana family, a close confidante of the Clericuzio family. The father, played by Joe Mantegna (who is thankfully not wasted here) and his son, played by the wonderful Jason Gedrick are amazing here in the other leads. The other characters come and go, and are good as well. Special commendations, though, go to Rory Cochrane and his truly NASTY portrayal of Dante, the VERY trigger happy grandson of Danny Aiello. Is this too long? Nah, it's a miniseries, and it's sprawling, and it's never dull. This was quite great!
