Suicide Kings (1998)

Carlo Bartolucci / Charlie Barret (Christopher Walken) is a former mob boss. He finds Avery Chasten (Henry Thomas) and Max Minot (Sean Patrick Flanery) sitting at his regular restaurant table. He starts talking to the young men and Brett Campbell (Jay Mohr) joins them. He wants to have a night out with the boys. Instead, they kidnap him after a struggle. Medical student T.K. (Jeremy Sisto) is there to treat him. Avery's sister Elise had been kidnapped for a $2 million ransom. They want his connections and money to save her. The kidnappers have cut off her finger and the boys cut off his finger in kind. Lono Veccio (Denis Leary) is Bartolucci's bodyguard. The guys have taken Bartolucci to their unsuspecting friend Ira Reder (Johnny Galecki)'s family home.This tries very hard to be like Tarantino. A finger is cut off pretty quickly. It's got Walken with a motley crew of young actors. The potential is there but it's all wrong. The guys take him from someplace public with lots of witnesses and bring him to Ira's home without telling him. Why? What if Ira shows up? What if Ira's parents show up? What if anybody shows up? It's a bad plan. The incompetence is really annoying. Then there is the reveal. It doesn't really make sense that they kidnap Bartolucci. None of these friends are appealing characters. They bother me a lot with their argumentative idiocy. That's its most glaring failing compared to Tarantino's electric dialog. The problem with this movie is how obvious it fails to hit its target and the failure is really bothersome.

Surprisingly good. Starts off in very silly and random fashion, but gets better and better as it goes on. The twists toward the end are great, and completely unpredictable.Great cast, of stars and stars-to-be: Christopher Walken, Dennis Leary, Jay Mohr, Sean Patrick Flannery. Christopher Walken brings his usual brooding intensity, Dennis Leary the humour and wisecracks (apparently many of his lines were ad libbed) and Jay Mohr the insanity. Also includes Johnny Galecki, long before he was famous for Big Bang Theory, and Laura San Giacomo in a minor role.

You're not missing much story wise, if that's all you're interested in. Instead the story sets the context for that strange protagonist switch that starts to evolve throughout the movie, culminating in what I thought was a brutally efficient thought-provoker above that of the Warhol Soup Can.Yeah I just praised this movies sense of art more so than a widely respected and acclaimed cultural icon. Sue me.Starring the kid from Rosanne was a nice touch I thought, his character is so pitiful its hard not to feel bad for him, and he conveys that pretty well... Giving a stark contrast between the seemingly ignorant yet vicious character played by Jay Mohr, as well as the seemingly compassionate yet troubled character played by Jeremy Sisto.... Walken does Walken tied down in a chair most of the flick. 'Nuff said. No really, you *know* he's mafioso, yet the situation he's in could make one ponder that his motives are actually true and just... Not just the typical ruthless mobster. Hence the protagonist switch.It's that thought alone that brings a lot of artistic value to this film. I thought about pre-judgement and true common sense. That's the artistic quality of a painting, right? It evokes thought, and emotion...On that note, some of the acting is pretty unbelievable, but the usual contrast by a more talented actor makes the emotional twist of this movie sink in a bit.Not a film for the ages, but this should be watched in film studies. The movie itself conveys the same thought I mentioned previously: It's so campy and low budget, yet keeps you hooked with the awesomeness of Leary and Walken. And now that you've bitten, the movie delivers on a promise that you thought it couldn't make.Post-Modernity :D

The "Suicide Kings" believe that when one crime is committed, the best way to solve it is to commit a couple more crimes. This sets up the dark comedy execution. It begins with crimes, corruption and enough intrigue to keep moving forward.Christopher Walken is Charlie, the mob boss with connections, a shady past and even shadier make-up. Avery (Henry Thomas)'s sister is kidnapped, and then Avery, Max (Sean Patrick Flannery) and Brett (Jay Mohr) kidnap Charlie with the help of aspiring doctor T.K. (Jeremy Sisto). Ira (Johnny Galecki) unfortunately knows none of these goings-ons even though they decided to use his father's house. They are all smart and privileged, but also blindly stubborn and confident. Taking place almost entirely in one house and one bloody night, everything is put in question.As the characters develop with the plot, they start learning more about themselves just as we do, and there is a surprising amount of thought and introspection to the "Suicide Kings". It is a crime drama thriller with a liberal use of dark comedy and just so well written that I can't even fault it for being mostly male-driven.