Saturday, January 26, 2008

Brooklyn Rules

Mrs. Film Geek has the serious hots for mobsters.

I don't think it's the bad hair of the portly body type of the Anthony Soprano stereotype she likes (if that was the case she'd not find me attractive, what with my great hair and Adonis-like body). Rather, I'm pretty sure it's the brotherhood, secret handshakes and the loyalty among thieves that she digs.

Her love for all-things-gangster, though, sometimes plays a role in my movie viewing options. She loves searching the Netflix site for "gangster" and "mob" and having flicks like Brooklyn Rules mailed to our home.


The upside: Brooklyn Rules was written by Sopranos bigshot scribe Terence Winter, and co-stars always-great-as-a-bad-guy Alec Baldwin as the leader of the local branch of the city's mob family.

The downside: Freddie Prinze, Jr. is the lead, and the story is less about gangsters as it is about three lifelong friends trying to figure out their paths in life.

Prinze is okay as the smart one, who struggles to keep his hands clean even while his instinct isn't always very noble. Jerry Ferrara is mostly unbelievable as Bobby, the baby-faced innocent who never seems to have his plans work out for him. The standout performance is Scott Caan, the son of James Caan, who plays the role of Carmine. Carmine recognizes that, unlike his two friends, his career options are pretty narrow. He's attracted to the bling of the gangster lifestyle, and gets in hip-deep before even realizing it.

His actions, of course, affect his two best friends.

Brooklyn Rules is an average film, with a predictable plot and outcome. Although it's not very original, the story is at least interesting and well written.

It's just not very sexy.

2 comments:

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

FG: Thanks for the insight. This is one I'll have to watch.

Anonymous said...

Have you reviewed Juno yet? I want to get your opinion. Probably one of the only movies that uses the phrase 'home skillet' within the first 5 minutes of show..