Better on the large screen than T.V.

Rating: 8/10 (5 April 2006)

I'm not going to rehash the story line at this point because you've most likely read the other ten pages or so detailing that. I choose to make mention of the acting and production values. Firstly, I saw this when it was released in the theaters and on a large screen it certainly makes a terrific impact, acting wise and in vision. The production was done with a "money's no object" quality and it shows. There is much detail given to sets, costumes and cars of the late 1920's. How many times have you seen a period film and there's always that one glitch in there like the most infamous one, a Roman centurion wearing a wrist watch? Not here. The acting, Kostner aside, is superb. Between de Niro and Connery there's pretty much nothing left for Kostner to do except read his lines, and he does that well. But as always, at least for me, for someone who's obviously more than just a capable actor, he STILL just reads his lines and plays it one dimensional. That's OK though because we get the impression, true or not, that Elliot Ness is a government worker just out doing his job, namely to bring down Mr. Big, aka Al Capone. Mr. de Niro on the other hand portrays as evil a character as Mr. Connery portrays an heroic one. Fact is, these two virtually steal the picture away from Kostner. I'm not being super critical of Mr. Kostner here because in essence he does shine dramatically and primarily because of the other two. They seem to have motivated him to go beyond and that's what any good ensemble with the chemistry can accomplish. One other point I just have to mention to all you film history buffs out there. The scene in the train depot where they're having a shoot out and the mother looses the grip on the baby carriage and it's shown rolling down the flight of stairs in slow motion. That is a direct quote from the early Russian silent film "Battle Ship Potemkin". Look for that scene and compare the two. A bit of an "homage" maybe or plagiarism? You decide.