Lucky Number Slevin (2006)

A movie friend and I agree that this movie missed on being a classic in its ending. I've always wondered if they did an Alpha group testing and let the audience decide on how the movie closes out.Timeless classics have a tendency to leave an audience uncomfortable and unfulfilled. This is not one of those. The same kind of thing was done with the modern -war of the worlds-.Neither of these movies are something a viewer will come back to or remember

I recently watched this film for the third or fourth time and after re-watching it wondered why it had taken me so long to sit down to enjoy it once again.This film is fantastic! It begins with just the right level of confusion/mystery, and once the pieces start falling methodically in to place you can't help but be captivated with how well all of it was put together. The story is good, and the characters - all quirky in their own right - are interesting and appealing.An incredible film that I would highly recommend!

Akira Kurosawa's film Yojimbo involves a samurai that plays off two rival criminal clans against each other until they are both annihilated. Sergio Leone made almost a shot for shot remake of Yojimbo unofficially (Kurosawa sued him and won out of court) to create Fistful of Dollars, the movie that made Clint Eastwood a legend. In that movie Eastwood played a gunslinger playing two ranchers against each other and, you guessed it, both of their crews get annihilated. This movie is heavily influence by both of those films. In it Josh Hartnett plays off Ben Kingsley against Morgan Freeman and destroys them both. Hartnett gets a lot of help by a mysterious hit-man. The hit-man is played by Bruce Willis, in the last film he actually bothered to care about and act well in. His character is reminiscent of Willis' Butch from Pulp Fiction. The Wrong Man (also known as Lucky Number Slevin) is a compelling fast paced action thriller in it's own right and its probably a good primer for the two older films I mentioned.

There should definitely be more movies like this, but unfortunately crime comedies seem to be a dying genre. The only two such movies I know of coming out soon are Steven Soderbergh's Logan Lucky and Edgar Wright's Baby Driver. It checks pretty much all of the blocks that need to be checked in a satisfying and proficient manner. The actors are all well cast and own their performances of distinct and likable characters. The plot is complex, but exposed with enough clarity that it is easy to be on the same page that the writer wants you to be on. There is an excellent twist at the end that I won't spoil, but I will say that it is a shocking twist that is very hard to predict and is shocking without insulting your intelligence with its simplicity. The twist also does not cheat by withholding information like in Guy Ritchie movies.Our story follows Slevin Kelevra who is caught in the middle of a war between two crime bosses when they both mistake him for someone else. Slevin is an immediately likable protagonist in his wit, down to earth manner, and confusion that matches our own. The remainder of the cast consists of several minor characters that all get good exposition. They don't feel like real people, but they are all distinct and enjoyable to watch which is good. The Boss and the Rabbi have a good separate but equal vibe; they play the same role in the plot but are very different people that are not presented in a way that is meant to make them parallel each other too strongly. Lindsay serves as Slevin's periodic escape from the madness of the situation he is caught in, although she is able to help him at a few points. Mr. Goodkat is the mysterious wildcard stonily played by Bruce Willis. The only major character that I thought was not incorporated well was Birkowski (Stanley Tucci). Along with the aforementioned characters, there are a few other little characters that don't get much screen time but are very enjoyable when they are on screen. The characters are played by an all-star cast, but I thought every actor fit their role pretty well and weren't just selected for their talent just as much as their ability to sell tickets. The world that the movie creates is very true to its identity, which I won't fully describe for spoiler reasons. But it made me feel as if everything I saw and heard could be important. Amidst the plot it was also able to fit in clever dialogue throughout. The conversations and one-liners are reminiscent of Pulp Fiction and Ocean's Eleven, though I felt that Lucky Number Slevin did better than Pulp in terms of dialogue. However, it did not feel as though it was ripping off either movie. It had an engaging and unique visual style, and I would definitely want director of photography Peter Sova based on the work he did here. There is nothing in this movie that hasn't been seen before, but it was executed especially well enough that it didn't have to do anything special to compensate.Last I checked, this is still on Netflix, so I would try to catch it before it gets taken down. And who knows, maybe Netflix will come out with its own crime comedy if enough people watch this. It may not become your favorite movie, but I would be surprised if it didn't entertain you at least a little bit. If nothing else, it should hold your attention for two hours and brighten your weekend a little. Overall Rating: 8.4/10.