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"Donnie Brasco Is
Quite A Hit, Man" |
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Directed by Mike Newell
- Written by Paul
Attanasio
Starring Johnny Depp, Al
Pacino, Anne Heche,
Michael Madsen, Bruno
Kirby
Distributed by Tristar -
1997 - 127mins - Rated R |
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In 1978, the U.S. government waged a war against organized crime. One
man was left behind the lines. |
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I have
wanted to see this movie for a long time. After all, it features 2/3
of my all time favorite actors! (Those three would be Humphrey Bogart,
Al Pacino, and Johnny Depp, and those two would be Pacino and Depp.)
Anyway, it is the true story of an FBI agent with the alias Donnie (Depp),
who infiltrated the Mafia in 1978. He became friends with Lefty, an
aging gangster who has never amounted to anything. Over time, Donnie
became respected by the criminals and he became almost absorbed in the
lifestyle.
The story may move slowly with "Donnie Brasco" but it is more than
made up for. Just as I have always hoped, Pacino and Depp are
wonderful together. Depp underplays his role brilliantly, and Pacino
finds a fine line between an over-the-top mobster and a sympathetic,
broken man. Also, look for Michael Madsen as a mob boss. He is very
constricted compared to his other roles, and it is fun to watch |
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© Written by Jacob Hall -
Email
Me! |
TC Candler's Comment
Pacino &
Depp are magnificent together in this brilliant
mob movie. This film is criminally
underrated because of the legendary mob films
that came before it.
Richard Propes' Comment
See the
words "move slowly" in Jacob's review. It is
precisely that issue that keeps the film from an
"A" range to me, however, it is an infinitely
watchable film largely due to the performances
of Pacino and Depp. Mike Newell has always been
prone to slower pacing, but it doesn't always
work in a film such as this one. Still, what he
lost in pacing he made up for in character
development. The end result is a fantastic film.
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