Category Archives: Crime

2008, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crime, Drama, Drugs, Gangs, Nudity, Occasional gore, TV Series, Violent

Breaking Bad (2008)

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From NetFlix:

Diagnosed with cancer and given only two years left to live, high school chemistry teacher Walter (Emmy winner Bryan Cranston) attempts to secure his family’s financial future by teaming up with his former student, Jesse (Aaron Paul), to produce and distribute the illegal drug meth. As Walter slowly builds his empire, his wife, Skyler (Anna Gunn), grows suspicious of his erratic behavior, and the DEA starts searching for the area’s new drug kingpin.

NetFlix offers 3 TV seasons of “Breaking Bad” which started in 2008. Put this TV series in the “outrageous situations” category, which at times makes the happenings hilarious and wildly unexpected.

You might not like the theme and the events. Just to warn you, I give examples from season 1:

  • A high school chemistry teacher manufactures an especially high grade of crystal meth. In reality that drug destroys many lives. So you have to accept this premise.
  • At one point two drug dealers threaten the lives of Walter and Jesse in their camper trailer/meth lab. Immediately Walter figures out an escape which seems to kill both drug dealers.
  • Actually one dies immediately. But Walter and Jesse capture the other wounded dealer and imprison him in a cellar.
  • They flip a coin. Heads must dissolve the dead dealer in hydroflouric acid. Tails must kill the remaining dealer.
  • The acid dissolve is actually funny.
  • The killing is a serious bit of drama

So you can see why you might not enjoy this series. For what it’s worth Walter and Jesse play their parts to perfection.

1984, Coen Brothers, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crime, Drama, Revenge, Suspense, Violent

Blood Simple (1984)

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From NetFlix:

In a jealous rage, Texas tavern owner Julian Marty (Dan Hedaya) hires unscrupulous private detective Loren Visser (M. Emmet Walsh) to not only tail Marty’s two-timing spouse (Frances McDormand, in her big-screen debut) but also murder her and her paramour (John Getz). But events take a surprising turn when the gumshoe double-crosses his client. Joel Coen directs this stylish shocker co-written with brother Ethan Coen.

This is the first film that the Coen Brothers did together. For a recap of their career see the Wikipedia article which makes a table of 17 of their films including Barton Fink (1991), No Country For Old Men (2007), and Romance & Cigarettes (2005).

Violence seems to be their trademark. However, for me the attraction of the film was its firm foundation in gritty, believable reality. Special effects need not apply! The slow acting is pace-perfect. Part of that slow pace owes to an awful lot of actors just staring without saying anything. But in this film that style seems to work. When was the last time you saw a film in which the possible failure of a car to start was especially nerve-wracking ?

25 years ago, a very young Fances McDormand got by with a minimum of acting. John Getz seems to have spent most of his career in TV. Ditto for Dan Hedaya. M. Emmet Walsh is a face you have seen everywhere probably without knowing his name. For me Walsh had the most memorable part: evil with an ironic sense of humor. His part at the end is unforgettable.

If you want to watch Coen brother films, this is the place to start.

2007, Crime, Kidnapping, Revenge, Suspense, Violent

Shattered (2007)

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From NetFlix:

Neil (Gerard Butler) and Abby’s (Maria Bello) perfect life in Chicago is instantly turned upside down when their little girl (Emma Karwandy) is abducted by a kidnapper (Pierce Brosnan) with an elaborate scheme. With the clock ticking on their daughter’s life, the couple is totally forced to comply with the wishes of a true madman. Mike Barker directs this thriller; Desiree Zurowski and Claudette Mink co-star.

In this film Gerard Butler is passable. What this film is good for is plain old suspense and clever plot twists. It held my interest throughout.

2009, Car Chase, Crime, Drama, Suspense, Violent

Armored (2009)

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From NetFlix:

Armored truck guards Mike (Matt Dillon), Baines (Laurence Fishburne) and Quinn (Jean Reno) turn against one another after their plan to steal $10 million from their own company goes seriously haywire. A witness throws a wrench into their seemingly flawless strategy, so each man scrambles to save his own skin — whatever the cost to the other conspirators. Nimród Antal directs and Columbus Short co-stars

In the beginning “Armored” seems ordinary. It establishes the tight bonds between the guards who drive the armored trucks (“Rescue Me” anyone ?). But once again stay with the film. Basically the film is much about moral character and how humans react in times of great stress. In fact some of the characters are not just black and white (no pun intended), rather they change as the film progresses. Of course, it IS a car chase film with its usual macho roughness. Matt Dillon is a great changeling. Laurence Fishburne is an overweight disappointment.

One of the more original films in the car chase category that I have seen.

2009, Car Chase, Crime, Detective, Lawyers, Suspense, Violent

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (2009)

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From NetFlix:

Michael Douglas stars as corrupt district attorney Mark Hunter in this remake of Fritz Lang’s noir classic about a reporter, C.J. Nicholas (Jesse Metcalfe), who sets himself up as the prime suspect in a murder he didn’t commit in order to expose Hunter’s misdeeds. Nicholas’s plans go awry, however, when Hunter discovers the trap and destroys the evidence that would exonerate the cub reporter. Amber Tamblyn and Orlando Jones co-star.

In this film the suspense is so overwhelming that I stayed glued to my seat the entire time. If at one point the story seems to have too easy a solution, stay with the film to the very last second. More I will not say, but there are plot twists.

Although I marked the film as violent, you do not see any personal attacks, just some threatening scenes and one amazing scene in an underground parking lot.

Jesse Metcalf is John Rowland in “Desperate Hosewives”. Amber Tamblyn is Tibby in “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants”.

If you like suspense, this is a must see!.

2001, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crime, Detective, Drama, Religious Theme, Suspense, Violent

Frailty (2001)

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From NetFlix:

Director Bill Paxton’s gripping thriller has evil at its core — and a family in the crossfire. FBI agent Wesley Doyle (Powers Boothe) is trying to track down “God’s Hand,” a notorious murderer who’s resurfaced years after terrorizing a Texas town. The Meeks family — Fenton, Adam and their dad — gets involved when past and present converge and a long-tormented conscience is assuaged. Levi Kreis and Matthew McConaughey co-star.

Because I couldn’t stop watching, I knew I had stumbled on an excellent, suspenseful, psychological thriller and mystery with wonderful plot turns. More I will not say. But if you get confused, you can always read the Wikipedia article. The marvel in the film is that most of the film action takes place at a natural easily explained level of understanding. That, in part, is what makes watching this film so difficult. Indeed there is violence and killing. But the film is too intelligent to engage in explicit gore.

Matthew McConaughey, for once, is not a glamour boy. He, and all the actors, play their parts to perfection.

Toward the end of the film the film offers a new perspective. If anyone watches this film, please let me know how you reacted to this change.

2001, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crime, Detective, Drama, Drugs, Horror, Imperfect, Medical Theme, Mystery Film, Occasional gore, Suspense, Violent

From Hell (2001)

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From NetFlix:

Johnny Depp stars as an opium-huffing inspector from Scotland Yard who falls for one of Jack the Ripper’s prostitute targets (Heather Graham) in this Hughes brothers adaption of a graphic novel that posits the Ripper’s true identity. Ian Holm and Robbie Coltrane co-star in this genre-bending drama that marked Albert and Allen Hughes’s laudable attempt to break out of their pigeonhole as “black directors.”

Dark, gory, not Depp’s best. In a sense this is a mystery story: who is Jack the Ripper ? It’s almost as this film goes out of its way to discredit the Victorian power structure and especially the royal family. Give this film a shaky B and find something else.

2008, Could Be Sad, Crime, Drama, Explicit sex, Gay theme, Love Story, Nudity, Violent

The Mysteries of Pittsburgh (2008)

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From NetFlix:

Stuck in a terrible job, recent college grad Art Bechstein (Jon Foster) struggles to enjoy the last summer of his youth. Things begin to look up when he meets a beguiling couple (Sienna Miller and Peter Sarsgaard) who show him a new side of his hometown, Pittsburgh, and of himself. But as he and his new friends get into increasingly intense situations, Art is forced to choose between family, friendship and love.

Thanks to NetFlix for suggesting this sweet, sad, jewel of a surprise. John Foster (as Zack in 15 episodes of “Accidentally On Purpose”), Peter Sarsgaard (as David in “An Education”), and Sienna Miller (as Camille Foster in “Camille”) are pitch perfect. Also Nick Nolte is perfect as the gangster father.

Perhaps it is easy to play an emotionally hesitant role as does John Foster, but in this case it was exactly what was needed as a contrast with Sarsgaard’s somewhat out of control character. And Sienna Miller is just plain sweet.

More I will not say because there are some surprises along the way. Definitely not for children: there is sex and violence. Nonetheless it is a sweet film.

2008, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crime, Drama, Gangs, Love Story, Suspense, Violent

The Narrows (2008)

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From NetFlix:

Mike Manadoro (Kevin Zegers) is torn between two worlds — his numbers-runner father Vinny’s (Vincent D’Onofrio) Brooklyn way of life and the college lifestyle he discovers as a photography student — in this drama based on Tim McLoughlin’s novel Heart of the Old Country. While earning money for school as his father’s driver and by delivering packages for a local mobster, Mike yearns to fully embrace the urbane new world he’s entered.

Searching for films with Vincent DÓnofrio led to this dark tale of the Brooklyn underworld. An excellently detailed plot with many twists offers the young Kevin Zegers (who can also be seen in “Fifty Dead Men Walking”) a great acting opportunity. No-one disappoints. Be prepared for two especially ugly gang executions. Despite that violence, the story holds your attention at least because you are rooting for Mike Manadoro to save his soul. Vincent DÓnofrio (you either love him or hate him) offers the least quirky role of his career while still doing his usual perfect job. I have to mention Titus Welliver as the soulless gang leader Tony (why are they always named Tony, as in “Tony Soprano” ?) for his creepy unfeeling role. Welliver can be seen in the wonderful TV series “The Good Wife”.