Phoenix Nights

Gangster flicks such as this one are hard to pull off simply because you've got comparisons with greats such as Goodfellas and even more recently, the brilliant The Departed . The bar is set and James Gray's dark thriller tries to reach it and falls just a little bit short.

Set in Brooklyn in the late 80s this dark gritty drama tells the story of Bobby Green (played by Joaquin Phoenix) a drug taking club manageuir with a hot Puerto Rican girlfriend (Eva Mendes) much to the displeasure of his Deputy Chief of Police father Burt and cop brother Joseph (Wahlberg.)

With drug trading rife in New York the good brother and father are cracking down on clubs and they sit down with bad egg Bobby to tell him to keep his eye out. Bobby, a king in his underworld but a disappointment to his family, tells them where to stick it. The story takes a dark turn when a raid on Bobby's club led by his bro spells out the beginning of trouble to come. Family ties are strained and tested to the brink.

The premise is exciting and this film has a lot going for it particularly as Phoenix is fantastic. His complex character is the highlight of the film as the wounded bad boy who didn't fit in with the family ideal. Riddled with family politics the story is interesting, the action sequences rock and there are moments of nail biting tension BUT as a whole it's all a little clunky.

The pace dwindles and Gray seems a little obsessed with close ups of grown men crying which just gets annoying. And then there's the final showdown which, after the more impressive action scenes earlier is a let down. As far as extras go it's just the standard 'making of' featurette. Nothing to write home about.

It's worth watching but the fast forward button may come in handy.