Gangster Squad (2013) ***
Gangster Squad (2013) will never go down as a classic crime film. It's predictable, ridiculous, loud, brash, bloody, brawny, and over the top. It's full of anachronisms, ticks every trope, the action is sloppy, and the score is typical unremarkable wallpaper. Director Ruben Fleischer can't seem to decide what the tone is—it's difficult to tell how much he reveres the genre when the film also seems to mock it. Despite an all star cast, the performances aren't anything special though Sean Penn deliciously hams it up but good and there a few choice one-liners.
All that said—I still think it's fun! It's pulpy Hollywood schlock in the way that Brian De Palma's The Black Dahlia (2006) is. The production design is stylish and the cinematography and costumes sure make everybody look sexy. The plot plays fast and loose with the facts behind the real-life Gangster Squad but it makes for decent melodrama.
If Fleischer was hoping to create the 00s version of The Untouchables (1987) (review) or L.A Confidential (1997) (which it feels like he was) he certainly didn't, but I don't see the film as a failure. I've seen Gangster Squad three times now—it's satisfying in the way that junk food is, a tasty treat that doesn't enrich one's life, but can be enjoyed in moderation.
All that said—I still think it's fun! It's pulpy Hollywood schlock in the way that Brian De Palma's The Black Dahlia (2006) is. The production design is stylish and the cinematography and costumes sure make everybody look sexy. The plot plays fast and loose with the facts behind the real-life Gangster Squad but it makes for decent melodrama.
If Fleischer was hoping to create the 00s version of The Untouchables (1987) (review) or L.A Confidential (1997) (which it feels like he was) he certainly didn't, but I don't see the film as a failure. I've seen Gangster Squad three times now—it's satisfying in the way that junk food is, a tasty treat that doesn't enrich one's life, but can be enjoyed in moderation.
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