Here is a movie of two halves. The first half is absolutely brilliant, whilst the second becomes formulaic. For the first hour or so, we stick with Micky (Marky Mark) and, more importantly, Dicky (Bale) as we learn about their tough lives (c’mon it’s Boston!!). Christian Bale is incredible, a performance that is utterly plausible and compelling. It is easy to see what Aronofsky liked in the script. Dicky is certainly similar to “The Ram” with his self-destructive, yet heart-of-gold nature. Unfortunately, when he becomes more of the support in the third act, the film loses its legs. Marky Marky always looks like a lost kid, and he just can’t sustain the interest in the film, which becomes bogged down in predictability. Yes, we all know it’s real life, and what’s going to happen, but we need to care. Poor Wahlberg is not good enough to do this. Everybody else is good, but not phenomenal. Amy Adams does a decent job with a severely underwritten part. There is a jarring shot to her in lingerie, which you can tell Wahlberg wanted.
The film is incredibly well shot, with the various cameras seamlessly intercutting and keeping us absorbed in the action. The music is very solid, with Led Zepp and the Stones highlights on the soundtrack. It is, a very well made film, hampered by the fact that we know where it’s going. The performances certainly contribute to it being an above average film, but i couldn’t help feeling that the story focused on the lesser character. After all that we witness, the question i asked was who does the title refer to? Micky? Perhaps not…
4 Stars
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