Gangster Squad Review

'The Untouchables' is one of my all time favourite films, so when I heard that the narrative of Gangster Squad was almost a carbon copy, I was destined for disappointment. But this news didn't just disappoint me, it frustrated me more than anything else, having followed Gangster Squads production via a news feed on imdb I was incredibly exited, finally a breath of fresh air in the crime genre, a fresh, digital and vibrant look at neo-noir film-making with an attractive cast and a capable director. Instead what I got was a second rate remake with an erratic pace and a collection of characters I genuinely couldn't care less about.

That is not to say that it was all bad, after its opening that was obviously cut to pieces by the producers to get it under the 120 minute mark, the middle section showed some promise before falling apart again at the climax. Don't get me wrong the film was fall of clever and interesting set pieces but I don't think that's enough for me, its fine to make a parody if one is clever about it but it seems the Director, Ruben Fleischer had got a bit carried away with the style element of this feature and paid very little attention to the substance, and as any movie producers will tell you, there must be substance in order for a film to work. Might I just add that Ryan Gosling seems to be fascinated with that lighter of his to the point where it no longer was stylish but became somewhat of a guessing game whenever he entered the frame as to how long it would take for him to produce the lighter. 

Perhaps I am being harsh having been dissatisfied, as this film doesn't step into the realms of complete cinematic woefulness but I can tell you, it gets scarily close considering its cast and their capabilities. Nonetheless for all its flaws it was an enjoyable ride and succeeded in spurring me to pen my own gangster homage to be made into a short film, unfortunately it wasn't because I was inspired by Gangster Squad but I thought I can be more original than that.     

**