A very impressive and fun piece of quality entertainment. There was a moment or two when this film teetered on the edge of presenting something profound about identity or loyalty. But it never quite gets there. It’s no matter, cause — woah! that dude just got his head bashed in, and — yow! Jack Nicholson is doing something wacky! One couldn’t argue, either, that the film isn’t a good 20 or 30 minutes too long. But what to cut, really? All the performances are fantastic (I think Wahlberg steals a lot of his scenes) and, in essence, it’s just a cop movie, so why not just have fun? You won’t be bored, but you might periodically wonder “why do I care about this?” Of special note: all title sequences should have the Dropkick Murphys on the soundtrack. And just how tough do these clowns think they are with their dopey accent and calling their ‘hood “Southie?”
I hate to say it but…did you see the original? I almost wish I hadn’t because then I would have enjoyed this one much more. Other than an over the top, somewhat out of place Jack and the Boston Irish reset, they really didn’t change too much. Which kept begging the question while watching (as with most remakes)…did I need to see this again? I sat back at enjoyed the acting nonetheless but did get a little queasy when Stones songs (the same ones) much better used in Goodfellas kept popping up. In short, the whole thing felt like a very entertaining instant replay. But it’s never as good as the first time, is it?
I have not seen the orig. Would like to. Does it have the same crazy-ass editing?
Also: Yes: The Stones songs were a problem. But then I realized. . .those classic rock tunes ONLY appeared when Nicholson was onscreen. . .I thought that perhaps this was some kinda nod to the old guard? Nicholson the type of dude who’d be in those old Scorsese type movies? Maybe not. . . .