Yes, this is a tepid title. For a mafia movie this is indeed watchable and entertaining but a Lawrence of Arabia it is not. The fault lies not so much on the movie makers but with the subject matter. Very generally, this is a movie that concerns a group of young mobsters pitching an idea to embezzle money from banks to their previous generation of thugs, the generation of their fathers so to say. It is easy to display compelling drama with a clash of generations, but it is very difficult to present compelling drama centered around a person typing behind a computer. White collar crime is by its nature very surreptitious, and unless it is accomplished in a very deft manner is completely lost on the viewer. The filmmakers do the best they can in this situation, but it somehow comes off as lacking. This is where the goodfellas factor come in. The supporting cast feature well-known character actors of this genre from big screen to television. With a stronger script that next level of story could have pulled the narrative through. Sadly, much of this story line is generic and stereotypical. Hearing the dialogue I sometimes thought to myself, "Do they really talk like that today?"
What saves the movie is the rough production values of the shoot. The uneven shoot of the movie gives it an edge, which, for the life of me, I don't know was intentional or not. Still, the entertainment value is there, and it is always a treat to see James Caan in action, even for a little bit. This is recommended viewing if not for the fact that the movie is an attempt at what mobster movies will be concerned with more and more in the future.
What saves the movie is the rough production values of the shoot. The uneven shoot of the movie gives it an edge, which, for the life of me, I don't know was intentional or not. Still, the entertainment value is there, and it is always a treat to see James Caan in action, even for a little bit. This is recommended viewing if not for the fact that the movie is an attempt at what mobster movies will be concerned with more and more in the future.