Smartorhypo Highly Overrated But Still Good

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Skyler Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

Janis One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

mjsreg Although this film has been out for a few years, I have only just seen it - and it is impressive.Michael Shannon's portrail of real-life hit man Richard Kuklinski is absolutely superb. You really feel drawn into his world at various stages of his 'career', including the conflicts between his chosen profession while trying to maintain some kind of normal family life.There are plenty of moments in this film that will take you by surprise on your journey with the character.This film is well worth setting aside time to watch so you become fully engrossed in the story.

rusoviet This was a good study on what makes the north east fascinating to the rest of America. The reality of New York City is far different than what is shown on new Year's Eve or a film shot on Park Avenue. It is surrounded by decay and poorly built residences. I mention that because what citizens of NYC and its environs tolerate as 'ok' places to eat i.e. diners are in most instances, 'dark, greasy, dusty and old.This is relevant because the scenes throughout the film are similar to "A Most Violent Year" - this film is a solid move away from the nostalgia of 'Goodfellas' or the first two Godfather films.The protagonist Kuklinski is also a result of these dead ends - of bad decisions etc. but also the culture that is 'there'. I totally enjoyed the film - it is well acted and a great performance by Michael Shannon.Non-New Yorkers enjoy the thrill of the: accents used, violence, ethnic culture etc. Finally regardless of 'stake in the game', NYC is slowly dying out while not aware of it. This film will not be the same a mere decade or two moving forward - the future is the demographics of LA.

Leofwine_draca THE ICEMAN is based on the supposed true story of a Mafia hit-man who killed hundreds of people during a period ranging from the 1960s to the 1980s. It's deliberately styled to reflect the 'classic' gangster films of yesteryear, particularly Scorsese's GOODFELLAS, taking place in the same era and even with some of the same cast members (Ray Liotta, here taking the sort of role Robert De Niro would have played back in the day).The protagonist is played by the excellent Michael Shannon, of TV's BOARDWALK EMPIRE, and he helps to make this a grounded, realistic production. I admit I'm biased: I can't get enough of this guy, I love the kooky characters he plays and this is another addition to that fold. There are some great supporting actors in the film too, including an unrecognisable Chris Evans as a psycho (the best I've seen from him) and Robert Davi as another old-time gangster. I spent ages trying to place one character only to realise it was David Schwimmer, a far cry from FRIENDS.The storyline is quite predictable but there's plenty of violence and outrageous situations to keep things bubbling along, and there seems to be little "fat" on the narrative to slow things down. Winona Ryder gets short shrift as Shannon's wife, but then the focus is on executions and the like so family life doesn't count for much. THE ICEMAN is a dark gangster outing and a film I enjoyed greatly.

Johan Dondokambey The story nicely balances between the depictions of the ruthlessness of the contract killer Richie and the loving husband and father of two Richie. The two sides of the characters are nicely given equal portions of screen time and detail depth. Those depictions get even better with adequate support from experienced actors and actresses acting on them. I like to see the fact that only Michael Shannon's Richie, as the central character is actually the one character who links Chris Evans' character Frezzy and Winona Ryder's Deborah, while Chris and Winona don't even get to do a scene together. On the acting side I think Michael Shannon's performance here is one of his best. He did enough in surfacing all the characters emotions while keeping the character's calm and cool as a killer. I am quite amazed at how Chris Evans swerves his schedules in and out of movie shoots, from The Avengers, to Snowpiercer, and to this movie, all with significant roles.