|
 uicide Kings" is one of the better, lesser
known crime films that got lost in the sea of Tarantino-wannabes in the late
'90s. It deserves a much better fate than its compatriots simply because it's a
good film, with a terrific screenplay, and a thoroughly engaging performance by
the cast, including star Christopher Walken, whose character is taped to a chair
for most of the film.
The movie concerns a group of preppy 20-somethings who
decide to kidnap former gangster Carlo Bartolucci (Christopher Walken) in order
to exchange him for ransom money that they need to pay off some people who have
kidnapped one of the kids' sister. If abducting the retired and (supposedly)
reformed gangster is easy, keeping him adducted is going to be difficult.
Not only does Carlo (who now goes by Charlie) play with the boys' heads and is
turning them against each, but his right-hand man Lono (Denis Leary) is slowly
but surely closing in on the kidnappers – Elise's, and Charlie's.
The best thing about "Suicide Kings" is that it
really has a firm grasp on its many characters. The young actors, led by Jay
Mohr as the arrogant Brett, all takes their cue from Walken, and it's a good
thing they do because Walken is in prime form here. The other members of the
young cast includes Sean Patrick Flanery ("Boondock
Saints") as Max; it's Max's girlfriend Elise that was kidnapped. Jeremy
Sisto is TK, the med student and junkie, who seem to be going along for the
ride, or is he? Elise's brother is Avery (Henry Thomas), who isn't sure how he
got talked into doing this, or did he talk them into it? Finally, there's Ira
(Johnny Galecki), who is just hilarious as the owner of the house that the group
brings the abducted Charlie to hide in, and whose biggest concern is getting
caught by his absent dad.
The film shifts between two focuses – on Charlie as he
attempts to undermine the group's plans and Denis Leary's Lono, who tries to
track down Elise's kidnappers while at the same time slowly closing in on
Charlie's kidnappers. The movie is filled with humor and tension, with Charlie
slowly but surely taking apart the preppies while at the same time trying to
solve Elise's kidnapping from his armchair. Lono provides the film's violence,
moving through familiar gangland venues and getting into violent confrontations.
Denis Leary is terrific as Lono, a role he was born to play – hard, explosive,
and ticked off.
The film does falter in a number of areas. As previously
noted, there are some scenes (in particular a talk about shoes in a moving car)
that ring too fake and too "Tarantino-esque." That last part isn't
necessarily a bad thing, because Lono's dialogues is quite funny even as the man
moves about town with a gun in one hand and the itchy finger to use it. Still,
some of the gangster dialogue is just too familiar for their own good, and thus
the movie feels…familiar.
The bulk of "Suicide Kings" is verbal
confrontation between Charlie and his kidnappers, so it's a good thing all the
actors involved are quite good. In particular Mohr, who chews the scenery as the
loudmouth of the group, the man with the plan who, as it turns out, didn't
actually think everything through. The matter of Elise's kidnapping is also a
mystery, as Charlie's "people" gets closer and closer to the
kidnappers, and it becomes obvious one of Charlie's kidnappers is involve with
Elise's kidnapping. But who is it, and for what reasons?
Although it doesn't come anywhere close to breaking new
ground, "Suicide Kings" is still a worthwhile film in that it's vastly
entertaining and the acting is superior by all involved. The direction could
have been better, more kinetic or visually stunning, but Leary and Walken and
the young cast give the film vibrant life anyway. What more could you ask for?
It certainly rises above its fellow crime films of the late '90s, that's for
sure.
|
