"I'm trying to tell a story here"

Rating: Null/10 (24 March 2004)

* * *DO NOT READ THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE FILM!!!* * *
Very masculine and Western, so the balance is a bit off, but that doesn't mean it's not good. It's always nice to see a movie where everything is clear and nobody talks about love. Let's face it: the number of movies made about falling in love is way out of proportion to the number of times it actually happens. Then again, so are movies about bank robberies, but anyway, the point is, as a man, you can feel very comfortable when you watch this movie, even if it is in a guilty way.
Women are pretty much absent, only referred to, or objectified, or killed. The characters talk about ni#gers and Jews, call each other motherf#ckers. Just like a lot of real guys.
And the best part is, the theme is established from the very beginning. And that theme is: guys like to talk and tell stories. This is the point. It may be good and it may be bad. Steve Buscemi talks a lot and he lasts the longest. But Mr. Orange doesn't talk at the beginning or in the car, and he turns to be the rat. Message: you gotta talk to be one of the guys. Joe warns that you can't joke around, you gotta do your job. Message: if you don't take serious things seriously, you'll end up in a bad situation. For the undercover cop to get accepted, he needs a story. It's like a key.

Overall, you can tell the direction of the movie is not so smooth. The middle part with the captured cop seems really heavy, like it weighs the movie down. Some camera angles are maybe original, but really kind of pointless I think. I feel sometimes like I'm stuck, and I want to move, but there's no reason why the director would want me to feel that way for that scene (e.g. the warehouse washroom). However, I don't consider any of this to be a fault. I like that better than really slick directing. To me, this is more real, and lets you focus on the story. Or rather, the storytelling. This movie is all about storytelling. Or actually, it's all about listening to stories. We like to listen to stories. That's why the cops in the washroom tell the story and I still remember it. This movie teaches you the importance of details.