Booze, Broads and Bullets

206. Give ‘em Hell, Malone (Russell Mulcahy, 2009)

The last film of the year is one that I’ve been particularly excited about seeing.  I’d posted about the excellent looking trailers HERE and HERE.  Give ‘em Hell, Malone doesn’t disappoint as it plays out like the surly bastard child of Sin City and Dick Tracy.  Thomas Jane is Malone, the hard-bitten, hard drinking, hard as nails bagman who we see attempting to get hold of a briefcase in a brutal opening scene shootout.  Once he gets hold of the bag then the trouble starts.  There’s smoking dames, psychotic bad-guys, blood, guns and some of the wittiest tongue-in-cheek noir dialogue since Bogart sparkled with Bacall.

This a great slice of modern genre film-making, a comic-book palette meshes the neo-noir world that Malone inhabits with the real world outside which occasionally breaks through in humorous ways.  References are made to e-mails sent and modern cars are seen in traffic with Malone’s battered 40s saloon.  If I have a criticism it would be that the Mulcahy is a bit too hectic with the camera but that’s no major problem, easily overlooked with everything else good that is going on.  It’s a shame that a cinema release wasn’t a possibility but you should seek this film out – it makes a cracking bit of Friday night entertainment.

A full review of my brilliant year reviewing movies is forthcoming along with the changes that I’ll be making for the coming year.  Thanks for reading, commenting and sending films it has been great fun.