A few years ago director Ruben Fleischer burst onto the scene with his savvy comedy-horror Zombieland and then went on to make disappointing comedy 30 Minutes or Less. Now he has swapped the undead and slacker bank robbers for bullet-strewn bodies and tough-talking cops with Gangster Squad. Although arguably a hollow exercise in style over substance, the film’s gorgeous glossy aesthetic really transports you to a bygone era in a way that may not have the weight of the many similar films it so desperately wants to be but is nevertheless enjoyable.
Based on the book by Paul Lieberman, the plot follows a group of cops in 1949 L.A. who are brought together by leader of the pack Sgt. John O’Mara (Josh Brolin) to take down the ruthless Micky Cohen (Sean Penn), an Eastern gangster hell bent on claiming the city for his own.
Unashamedly violent but in a video game-esque way that leaves it sitting somewhere just off reality, the film’s glossy action can sometimes threaten to damage the believability or danger that the team of cops-turned-vigilantes find themselves in. Its unique and playful style makes otherwise pedestrian shootouts beautiful, but it never achieves any sort of realism. However, that’s part of the fun of the film; I don’t think it’s aiming for gritty realism but rather to envelope you in the fantasy, dream-promising land of 1940s Los Angeles.
The film may be called Gangster Squad but it really only focuses on a couple of them, namely Josh Brolin’s honourable Sgt. O’Mara and Ryan Gosling’s suave Sgt. Wooters. Brolin’s subplot involving his love and protection of his pregnant wife works far better than Gosling’s story which sees him having a relationship with Cohen’s alluring girlfriend Grace (Emma Stone). This is mainly due to the fact that Gosling and Stone have next to zero (sexual) chemistry here, a real shame since it worked so well in rom-com Crazy, Stupid, Love.
The film’s major downfall is that the rest of the titular squad – played by Anthony Mackie, Michael Pena, Robert Patrick and Giovanni Ribisi – are relegated to the sidelines, only chipping in with the occasional one-liner or to complete the line-up of machine gun bullet spraying.
The real pleasure cast-wise is Sean Penn, who is clearly having a ball playing ultra-gangster Micky Cohen. He’s cartoonish and ridiculous but provides many of the film’s most electrifying scenes, helping to give the occasionally clunky dialogue a gravitas it wouldn’t otherwise have.
The film’s familiarity can be forgiven somewhat because it’s trying at least partly to stick to the true story but the mechanics of the overall plot is something we’ve seen many times before. Even down to the gangster retaliation attacks with machine gun bullets tearing through cars and houses (The Godfather, anyone?), it’s not breaking any new ground within the gangster genre and in that way it doesn’t leave much of a lasting impression. It’s more of a thrill while it lasts rather than something you’re going to be thinking about months down the line.
While the film strongly reminds you of better gangster tales of years past – The Untouchables and L.A. Confidential chief among them – Gangster Squad nonetheless survives on the strengths of its graceful action, enjoyable performances and elegant visuals. It’s undoubtedly silly and over-the-top but ultimately a good bit of fun.
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