Review of The Drop (2006) by Callum H — 27 Dec 2014

"They never see you coming; do they Bob?".

I don't understand the current fascination within films which focus, some more so than others, around dogs; such films include last year's fantastic Seven Psychopaths, this year's John Wick, and now Michael R. Roskam's 2014 crime drama, The Drop. Featuring an all star cast, this film has been on my radar for a number of months, and I was recently fortunate enough to get it screened for myself. What I received was slightly underwhelming; The Drop is a crime drama which believes it is smarter than it really is. Whilst being composed of numerous, impressive components, it comes off as slightly bloated, disappointing and deficient. Whereas other exceptional 2014 crime thrillers like A Walk Among The Tombstones (one of my favourite films of the year) managed to successfully incorporate a gloomy atmosphere and slow pace having it build to something outstanding towards the climax, The Drop often fails to adequately deliver the punches it seeks to connect. It's most certainly not a bad film; it is an entertaining, often enthralling and captivating picture, bolstered by a number of seriously impressive performances and some great cinematography and locations, but it fails to live up to its more far-fetched aspirations.

The film centres around Bob, a bartender at his cousin's bar; this bar, entitled 'Cousin Marv's Bar' is a drop point for local mobsters to leave cash on designated occasions. As Bob is walking home one night, he finds a battered, abandoned puppy in his neighbour's trash can, and feels obligated to share the responsibility of caring for the animal with the neighbour, Nadia. Soon enough, though, it is revealed that this wasn't just a random occurrence; things begin to unravel out of control when the bar is robbed whilst it is the official designated drop point, and Nadia's ex-boyfriend returns to wreak havoc and toy with Bob and his past.

Perhaps the biggest issue with The Drop is its admirable attempts to maintain absolute realism all throughout. Whilst the dark and depressing atmosphere of Brooklyn streets provides a wonderful backdrop for this gloomy picture, the performances and writing don't always match it in terms of relatability and realism. Whilst the lead actors and actresses James Gandolfini, Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace all try their very best to make the dialogue written for their individual characters seem natural, the slurring of their words and the constant halts in conversation are too consistent and irritating to dismiss. This is most evident from Tom Hardy, who plays Bob, his entire performance anchored around his stilted speech which often comes off as if he is forcing his words. It doesn't feel at all natural (problem is, I've never been to Brooklyn, so I can't say what exactly is natural for that part of New York, though this doesn't feel as if it is) and can be quite distracting at certain points. Fortunately, Gandolfini and Rapace manage to transcend the awkwardness of a number of their pieces of dialogue due to competent and enthralling acting, Gandolfini especially hitting it out of the park. He gets entirely involved with this story of corruption, deceit and betrayal, and his twisted and cynical portrayal of his character, Cousin Marv, is haunting, despite some of the cliches the character is involved with.

I feel like I'm completely crapping all over this movie and its performances, when in reality, I really did enjoy a lot of the individual components in play. I did in fact enjoy Tom Hardy's performance and how it always seemed to be holding something back until the climax of the picture; I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the film, and how it fully encompassed the mournful, wet look of what I would predict the real Brooklyn is composed of. I enjoyed numerous sequences, and the relationship between Bob and Nadia is sweet and builds slowly but surely. Unfortunately, the film still comes off as uneven in numerous portions, and the way the film builds to its climax is never purely consistent. At any given point, the film is trying to focus on a character or event, and lends much time towards building and elaborating on said character or event, only to leave it shortly after. For example; we're gifted with numerous scenes involving Cousin Marv that seem to be hinting towards a greater importance for the character. As the climax nears though, his resolution becomes almost an afterthought, Bob's finale becoming the only one the film really gives two shits about. It's a great finale for the protagonist, even if the film refuses to just stop immediately after it and continues for another, unnecessary ten minutes, but it's still disappointing to see Cousin Marv, arguably the most interesting character in the film, get little-to-no defining or riveting conclusion. We understand what has happened to him, but we aren't moved, compelled or at all affected by it. It just happens, and that's it.

Fortunately, Bob and Nadia, the two central protagonists, are gifted with solid conclusions that are appreciated, as well as a lot of great character building moments that aren't just swept aside as little more than filler ten minutes later. Screenwriter Dennis Lehane understands how to build characters effectively, even if sometimes he doesn't allow that build to properly pay off; nevertheless, his efforts in expanding these characters are often highly appreciated, Bob and Nadia especially being two particularly interesting human beings who get genuinely invested within. Whilst some of the situations they are thrown into aren't necessarily overtly compelling, their relationship and traits play off well enough for one to be enthralled by them solely. Fun and interesting characters are always a necessity in these films, and whilst some of them are entirely undervalued (not only Cousin Marv, but a police officer, Nadia's ex-boyfriend and the main mobster demanding his money back), the main protagonists are treated to a lot of strong and defining development.

In terms of technical achievements, they are minor but still noticeable. The cinematography is minimalistic and effective, the editing fine, the lighting particularly good. The score by Marco Beltrami, on the other hand, lacks the emotional resonance that he developed within The Giver, and never advances the drama or atmosphere of the film. It is a generic, basic wall of sound that develops over the background of the film, and it continually disappoints. All the same, The Drop is an undeniably entertaining picture, which builds steadily but surely, and climaxes with a bang. It's undeniably uneven, and contains some rather underdeveloped characters, but one can't dismiss the performances and most of the writing, both of which are generally outstanding. The direction is average; generic even at points. Attempts at standing out from the crowd of crime dramas released within this year are met with little appreciation from myself. But what The Drop is trying to do it does with flying colours, and even taking into account the negatives, the picture is still a thoroughly fascinating escapade into the shady under-dwellings of Brooklyn.

"I had something once. I was respected. I was feared.".