Baby endangerment may be next to tossing puppies off high-rise balconies as ill-advised plot elements in movies—John Woo’s “Hard-Boiled,” riffing on Sam Fuller’s “Dead Pigeon on Beethoven Street” may have been the apotheosis—but that doesn’t mean filmmakers like the seemingly humorless Jeff Celentano won’t reach for that terrible effect in violent goulash like “Breaking Point.” Knotty plotting, conspiratorial complexes and scowling performances by the likes of Tom Berenger, Busta Rhymes, Kirk “Sticky Fingaz” Jones and Armand Assante make this New York City would-be drug noir near-intolerable for its epic mediocrity. Worse, there’s a strain of misogyny that dances around racist violence, then accomplishes it. The opening scene promises modest Armageddon but fails on its crude promise. 93m. Widescreen. (Ray Pride)
Ray Pride is Newcity’s Senior Editor and Film Critic. He is a contributing editor of Filmmaker magazine.
Ray’s history of Chicago Ghost Signs is planned for publication next year. Previews of the project are on Twitter and on Instagram. More photography on Instagram.
Seeing The Elephant: A Review Of Babylon The boisterous, brawling yet melancholy "Babylon," is a variation on film history, but more drawing for drama. It's gaudy and mean, celebratory and sorrowful.
Heart: A Review of Soul The real world is soulful, too, in Pixar's bountiful life of the mind.
Fine Line: A Review Of Shortcomings It's a season for the comeuppance of a curmudgeon in Randall Park's smart, biting "Shortcomings," adapted by Adrian Tomine from his graphic novel of the same name.
Baby endangerment may be next to tossing puppies off high-rise balconies as ill-advised plot elements in movies—John Woo’s “Hard-Boiled,” riffing on Sam Fuller’s “Dead Pigeon on Beethoven Street” may have been the apotheosis—but that doesn’t mean filmmakers like the seemingly humorless Jeff Celentano won’t reach for that terrible effect in violent goulash like “Breaking Point.” Knotty plotting, conspiratorial complexes and scowling performances by the likes of Tom Berenger, Busta Rhymes, Kirk “Sticky Fingaz” Jones and Armand Assante make this New York City would-be drug noir near-intolerable for its epic mediocrity. Worse, there’s a strain of misogyny that dances around racist violence, then accomplishes it. The opening scene promises modest Armageddon but fails on its crude promise. 93m. Widescreen. (Ray Pride)
