Review of Gangster Squad (2013) by Dana F — 23 Jun 2013

Well, the reviews aren't wrong. I started out hopeful, because the first 30 minutes were not bad and did a good job of establishing the plot and characters. But it all goes downhill from there. None of the characters are developed so you don't end up caring about any of them, and the plot gets sillier and sillier as it progresses.

By the third act, it has become utterly ridiculous. The acting isn't bad (even Sean Penn's over-the-top performance), but there's not a lot of meat for the actors to sink their teeth into.

There is incredible talent in this movie, but sadly it is all wasted. The film itself is gorgeous, really stunning, and it was worth watching based on that alone. But it's a beautiful mess. It's fine for popcorn entertainment, but if you want to see a quality movie about mid-20th century corruption in LA, watch "L.

A. Confidential" instead.