MediaMuseum

I watched this movie in search of the best Mafia movies of all time. For some reason, this film is in many of those lists and it doesn't belong there. There is nothing mafia, mobster or gangster about this movie. Except taht it's about a bunch of criminals. As an old school black and white action movie - this movie stands heads and shoulders above most. Sometimes the pace of these older movies is hard to take by newer generations when they are used to a much faster storytelling pace. Throughout the pic, I'm on the edge of my seat wondering what happens next and it never really slows down. When Virginia Mayo is in the scene, I am in awe of her beauty. I wonder how stunning she must have been in person. James Cagney plays an excellent deranged killer and I believe it the whole way through. A feature that doesn't get much attention in other reviews is the way this film highlights technology. Coming off the glut of military movies after World War II, this movie brings in some of the technology from WWII. The directional radio beacons in the police cars and the phone handsets must have been awe inspiring to audiences back in 1959. This part of the storyline in addition to the raw action and film noir qualities, make it a Sunday Afternoon must see. It's worth whatever you have to pay for it.

Not sure I could resist a movie with Ed Norton, Robert Deniro and Milla Jovovovich - no matter what I had heard. I can say that they didn't disappoint me. I had mixed feelings going into this movie - I hadn't really heard good or bad about it - but then again, there was never any hype so something must have happened. For a film that takes place in a prison - I have to say they did a GREAT job of putting a new face on a well worn film cliché. The scenes that take place in the prison are unique and different enough to make me pay attention. While Ed Norton plays a character you've seen him play before (violent lower socio-economic criminal) - it's a character he plays well. Deniro surprised me - I didn't think he had anything left in him. But his character ends up seeming real and well rounded. And I have to say - I think Mill actually acted in this film. I was disappointed with the final few scenes - the end seemed awkward and clumsy. While the entire film focuses on the relationships of the main characters - the ending just doesn't give us anything. Maybe that's their way of not giving in to the typical Hollywood ending. Overall, I would say it's a movie to put on your list. But don't watch it on a date - it's a bit of a downer.

I give it a 4 out of 10. This is the second time I rented it tonight - by accident. I must have blocked it from my memory! I like Paul Bettany in pretty much anything - even in this. But they don't pull of what what they were trying to. Think Blade Runner with vampires - or Blade Runner Meets Blade - with religious overtones. The emphasis is always on the Visual storytelling -and getting the major themes to the screen. I see this a lot with Comic book stories coming to the big screen - in an effort to capture the original audience. But in this case - it just doesn't work. I'm always intrigued by movies that try to deal with religion in a futuristic setting - but rarely (if ever) - do they actually pull it off.