great movie in depth

Rating: 9/10 (28 September 2008)

What really floored me about this film are all the subplots. Usually, with this many subplots things get missed and there's always that tendency for casting of less-than-convincing characters. Not so here. The young black lady who played the prostitute killed by Waingro (the first one whom he told that he could always spot a liar). When she tries to lie, she does so convincingly (to the film watcher) that you think she's telling the truth. And her face changes as she realizes she's in grave danger. It is an awesome thing when a movie is planned, a great cast assembled, using a great storyline for a backdrop, and in the end, everything comes off as it should. It is not an infrequent occurrence in Hollywood that all of these components are in place, yet disaster strikes, and the movie is a dud. With a pairing of Pacino and DeNiro, and it coming off as well as it does, that would probably be enough for moviegoers. But add Val Kilmer, Ashley Judd, Dennis Haysbert, and the always interesting Tom Sizemore, and you have a cast without weakness. I am hoping that sometime soon, there will be a sequel using Pacino's character. It would be more than worth the wait.