Ben Affleck’s latest directorial effort comes in the form of a crime-drama in which he also stars, and pens the screenplay based off of Dennis Lehane’s novel. This looks to be a very polished 1920’s gangster film with a blend of romance and from this first trailer shows a great deal of promise.
The cast looks perfect for this time-period film; Ben Affleck looks strong in the lead and Elle Fanning, Zoe Saldana and Sienna Miller all have the ability to portray characters from the era. Their range will help make the most out of the writing, and if there is enough development to their roles, this film should turn out to be a highly intriguing organized crime story set in the Prohibition days.
The visual appeal looks more than capable as this trailer gave me thoughts of “The Great Gatsby” and “Gangster Squad.” The noir vibe looks great in this trailer and with detailed wardrobes, set-pieces and backdrops this film will clearly deliver the needed visuals to pull the viewer into the setting. But as always with films like these, no matter how polished the visuals are, or crisp the direction is, it will all come down to the script.
If the story falters, or the connection to the characters is not built, this will be a miss-fire. There does look to be some intense, well-shot action sequences, a deeply woven organized-crime story and a love dynamic all in one film, and hopefully there will be a nice balance of everything. The script doesn’t feel like anything we haven’t seen already in the genre but that does not mean this cannot be a great film.
The potential is there in the cast, and hopefully the screenplay Affleck created will use them to their abilities. This movie will be getting a wide theatrical release in early January, with a limited release in December, in time for Oscar thoughts. Whether or not this is a sign the filmmakers think there is some quality substance in this film remains to be seen but speaking for myself, I am looking forward to watching this one.
Release Date: 13, January 2017