I will admit, I never heard of this movie until after the death of James Caan. My local independent movie theater decided to show this movie (mostly because they could not get Misery). Needless to say, I'm glad they showed this one instead.
From the very beginning, we are immersed in Frank's world of thievery and showmanship. He steals diamonds and sells them on the black market, and then walks around in expensive suits with expensive trinkets. His carefulness and lack of ego for big jobs provides enough comfort for his normal life and just enough legitimacy to keep the cops off his back. And then his "fence" gets killed.
Frank does get his money back from the people that killed his fence, but then decides to walk into a darker, more dangerous world after coming to the conclusion that he wants the standard American dream of a home, wife and kids. What he gets instead is a deal with the devil.
All throughout the movie, Caan's portrayal of Frank seems to be the last bastion of the gritty 70s tough guy, an archetype lost in history when the muscle bound maniacs of the 80s took over. Caan was the perfect man for the job, and he goes through the film with aplomb and grit. Drifting through the dark backdrops of a world created by a green Michael Mann mesh perfectly.
There is really not too many bad things you can say about this film. The music was great, the lighting was perfect and the acting was perfect. I'm glad I got to see this film and can stick a feather in my hat for seeing this "lost" film.
From the very beginning, we are immersed in Frank's world of thievery and showmanship. He steals diamonds and sells them on the black market, and then walks around in expensive suits with expensive trinkets. His carefulness and lack of ego for big jobs provides enough comfort for his normal life and just enough legitimacy to keep the cops off his back. And then his "fence" gets killed.
Frank does get his money back from the people that killed his fence, but then decides to walk into a darker, more dangerous world after coming to the conclusion that he wants the standard American dream of a home, wife and kids. What he gets instead is a deal with the devil.
All throughout the movie, Caan's portrayal of Frank seems to be the last bastion of the gritty 70s tough guy, an archetype lost in history when the muscle bound maniacs of the 80s took over. Caan was the perfect man for the job, and he goes through the film with aplomb and grit. Drifting through the dark backdrops of a world created by a green Michael Mann mesh perfectly.
There is really not too many bad things you can say about this film. The music was great, the lighting was perfect and the acting was perfect. I'm glad I got to see this film and can stick a feather in my hat for seeing this "lost" film.