Kidnap films have been made for decades. (Check out Ransom for a typical example.) In a way Suicide Kings starts out like a low budget "B" movie of the 40's and 50's. The beginning is obvious and a bit overly dramatic. But this is when Suicide Kings began to surprise me.
Christopher Walken in an amazing performance shows that an actor can be the center of a film while sitting down for almost an hour. Also, this movie pulls no punches in showing organized crime/mob violence. Yet, the vigilante college kidnapers are shown in such a harsh manner that after a while you begin to root for the mobsters over the ivy league losers. It's an amazing turn around.
On top of this there is some wicked humor in the film not unlike Goodfellas. Denis Leary as he was in the Ref is great as the abusive and befuddled thug.
What was very satisfying was that the ending was just right. Finally a movie that does not have a ridiculous happy ending tacked on to it. Suicide Kings is brutal in its logic but the story makes sense from start to finish. Despite its low budget and its routine beginning, this is a very good film.
Christopher Walken in an amazing performance shows that an actor can be the center of a film while sitting down for almost an hour. Also, this movie pulls no punches in showing organized crime/mob violence. Yet, the vigilante college kidnapers are shown in such a harsh manner that after a while you begin to root for the mobsters over the ivy league losers. It's an amazing turn around.
On top of this there is some wicked humor in the film not unlike Goodfellas. Denis Leary as he was in the Ref is great as the abusive and befuddled thug.
What was very satisfying was that the ending was just right. Finally a movie that does not have a ridiculous happy ending tacked on to it. Suicide Kings is brutal in its logic but the story makes sense from start to finish. Despite its low budget and its routine beginning, this is a very good film.