Chilling and hard-as-nails but riveting
"The Iceman" (2013 release; 106 min.; not to be confused with the 1984 movie "Iceman" with Timothy Hutton) brings the true-life story of Richard Kuklinski, the notorious New Jersey contract killer with a double life as devoted husband and father. As the movie opens, there is a very short glimpse of a very old Kuklinksi, saying "I don't regret anything", after which we are transported back in time to 1964 when Kuklinski (played by Michael Shannon) is on a date with Debbie (played by Winona Ryder). Debbie asks him what he does and he answers "I do Disney movies" (when in reality we later find out he works as a porn movie manufacturer). It is the beginning of a long double-life. Kuklinski and Debbie get married and soon have two young daughters. Meanwhile, Kuklinski gets involved in dubious dealings that lead him to become a contract killer. To tell you much more of the plot would surely ruin your viewing pleasure, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out,...
No One Could Make This Up
This is one of those gnarly stories based on real life; Richard Kuklinski's story has to be true, no one could make it up. In this R-rated thriller written and directed by Ariel Vromen, we see what shapes a contract killer, what is important to him and whether or not he holds any values. It's awkward for an audience when we find ourselves in a position to be rooting for a cold-blooded killer, and yet we really do NOT want to see his sweet family jeopardized, so we want him to survive.
The cast:
* Michael Shannon ("Premium Rush" and "Boardwalk Empire") is Richard Kuklinski, our contract killer; he is a limited man with limited options: no education, no charm and no skills (other than lethal ones), so he does the best he can with what he has. Shannon is one of the finest actors working today and this difficult role is worthy of him.
* Winona Ryder ("The Dilemma") is Deborah Pellicotti, the shy Catholic girl who wouldn't even do any heavy petting until she was...
I'm not asking for forgiveness and I'm not repenting
Michael Shannon, Winona Ryder, Ray Liotta, Stephen Dorff, and David Schwimmer like you've never seen him before, lead a first-rate cast in this dark attempt to bring the true story of Jersey City-bred mob contract killer Richard "Iceman" Kuklinski to the big screen and almost succeeds. Yeah, there's a few minor flaws here. The first mistake is one that I would consider to be debatable - using Anthony Bruno's book as a key reference instead of the late Philip Carlo's. IMO Carlo's was superior to the former. The second being a somewhat sketchy plot. For those who don't know, Kuklinski (Shannon) was a killer living in Bergen County and worked in the porn business before doing contract killings for Roy Demeo (Liotta) of a Brooklyn faction in the Gambino Family. An awesome cameo from Stephen Dorff as Richard's deranged child rapist/murderer brother Joe Kuklinski is spot-on, and Shannon's dead-on impersonation of Kuklinski's HBO interviews is chilling. Schwimmer is hilariously sleazy as...
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