Review: The mutant son of "The French Connection"
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 30, 2013
When William Friedkin's movie version of "The French Connection" came out in 1971, it raised the bar for depictions of grittiness and nastiness in the drug underworld. A lot has come along since then, but after finishing "The Gamblers" by Martin Stanley, this is the closest parallel for me.The hero of "The French Connection" -- Popeye Doyle -- was not especially sympathetic. Neither is the protagonist of "The Gamblers," Kandinsky. In fact, he's a dreadful human being who's trying vainly to redeem himself by the worst means possible. He's surrounded by a huge array of even more loathsome characters, yet some of them (such as Liam the dealer and Dave the ultra-dirty cop) still engage gleams of sympathy as they try to keep their lives on track amid chaos.The subject matter here is not everyone's cup of tea. The violence is pulverizing (and the raunch factor is very, very high). But I stayed up well past my bedtime last night to finish this because I was compelled to see how it turned out. The intricate web of deceits and double-crosses plays out really well. Every time you think things can't get worse, they do. And the atmosphere -- with a big hand from the regional English locations and accents -- is very rich.