Review of At Close Range (1986) by Russell C — 26 Aug 2005

[font=Comic Sans MS][size=4][color=darkorchid][b]AT CLOSE RANGE[/b] is a movie that reminds me of the ancient Greek tragedies - the eternal war waged between fathers and sons over control, approval, and the handing over of the keys to the kingdom even if, as in this case, the kingdom is a decaying farmhouse in Pennsylvania and the king, Christopher Walken, is the head of a ring of thieves.[/color][/size][/font].

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[font=Comic Sans MS][size=4][color=#9932cc]I think it's one of the best performances that Sean Penn has ever delivered. He's not quite criminal material, but he's bored, oppressed by his environment, and he wants what he thinks is the glamour of his fathers' life. Finding out that his father is willing to sacrifice him - or anyone - is a betrayal that is painful to watch.[/color][/size][/font].

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[font=Comic Sans MS][size=4][color=#9932cc]Based on true events that took place in 1978 in rural Pennsylvania, [b]AT CLOSE RANGE[/b] remains one of the best films about small people with small dreams being destroyed by their own inability to think beyond the moment.[/color][/size][/font].