On H List of Movie Reviews
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Hoodlum (1997)
Rate:
4
Viewed:
12/20
12/20:
I had apprehensions prior to Hoodlum because of the astounding running length of 130 minutes but went ahead anyway
solely for Laurence Fishburne and Tim Roth.
Well, the movie turns out to be overlong with sometimes terrible editing. The cast is disappointing,
but at least, Andy Garcia gets the eye thing right for Lucky Luciano (a big whoo...I guess). Despite the excellent dialogue
early on which will be gradually worse, the screenwriter does no favors for Tim Roth who's supplied with junk lines,
forcing him to look stupid. He's a better actor than that.
There's no drama involved: just an endless series of back-and-forth between Bumpy Johnson and Dutch Schultz against the heavily
focused 30's in/exterior sets, cars, and costumes which look too damn clean. One of the biggest mistakes is
the inclusion of Richard Bradford as the corrupt cop because he played the exact same character in
The Untouchables!
The whole storyline is phony as a three-dollar bill. I must object the film's portrayal of Thomas E. Dewey. The
guy was honest, having been impervious to the influence of the Mafia. He was successful in prosecuting Lucky Luciano, despite
the fact that there were many corrupt officials, and taking down Dutch Schultz for good who was ultimately killed by the order
of the Mafia Commission. Dewey almost became U.S. President in 1948, hence the famous photo of the headline that was held
up by Harry S. Truman: DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN.
Having done better in Deep Cover, Bill Duke never directed a full-feature Hollywood picture again for twelve years.
He should've learned from the greats during the 90's in terms of what makes a movie good. Compared to
Deep Cover, Laurence Fishburne is disappointingly flat here.
All in all, if the movie is going to suck, there's no reason to make it longer or fake history.