(Originally from Facebook – August 16, 2013)

This should have been a no-brainer win for me. I like Michael Shannon (and most of the rest of the cast, which includes Robert Davi, James Franco, and David Schwimmer), and I had seen the HBO documentary with the real “Ice Man” years ago. Something just didn’t quite gel for me, though. The performances were good, and for me the surprise was Chris Evans, whom I didn’t even recognize until well on into the film. The mood was effectively tense. I even laughed at the “disco dancing” scene. Ultimately, though, it just felt a little flat.

Even though the performances were good, they were…expected. If there’s one guy who’s better at “bottled violence” than Shannon, it’s Ray Liotta. And he does it well here. But it’s what he always does. I also felt like the movie wanted to have a foot in two different stories–one, a story of a man working his way up the ranks of the underground, and two, a story of a man trying to hide his life of violence from his family. By not committing to one, both suffered. Lastly, although I know they’re somewhat bound by actual events, the film seems over before it really begins. The pacing is off, I guess.

All that is not to say it was a horrible film. It’s just that it was like eating fast food–I really enjoyed myself during the experience, but felt unsatisfied and regretful afterward. IMDB really liked this, giving it a 7.0. I can’t go that high with it. I say a 5, and if you do see it, see it for the performances, especially Shannon’s and Evans’s. (running time 1:46)