First hour is quite violent, but plot pays-off in second half

Rating: 8/10 (6 October 2006)

I was quite turned off by the close-contact violence in the first half of the film. In fact, at one point I considered walking out and waiting for my friend in the lobby. She was not bothered by the fistfights and other human cruelty, while I had to cover my eyes and hope the sounds weren't too disturbing! Having said that, as the plot developed in the middle third I began to enjoy the complexities of the plot. I would have preferred an "edited for content" version with most of the beatings cut out. It was difficult to keep the relationships and "who knows what" straight, and I was afraid at times that I was missing something, but all-in-all I kept up with the plot without any major missteps. Early in the film it was often difficult to keep Damon and DeCaprio straight, and I had to say, "Oh, that's Matt", or "Oh, now that's Leo." I'm not saying it wasn't possible to tell them apart, but thinking of the characters as the actor's names didn't really do much to help me become absorbed into the world of the Boston Irish mafia. Also, Jack Nicholson was always "Jack" to me in this film, never completely becoming Costello.