Full Movie Reviews
Rating of
2/4
"Lawless" by Yojimbo
Yojimbo - wrote on 07/02/2014
Three brothers in the bootlegging business during the prohibition era refuse to bow to the will of Chicago gangsters and provoke a war between their backwoods community and big city organised crime. John Hillcoat reunites with scriptwriter Nick Cave who collaborated on the atmospheric and characterful The Proposition for this old school gangster drama which unfortunately has neither of those qualities. Despite a promising cast, Lawless is a rather unengaging affair that's a little too admiring of some pretty unpleasant violence perpetrated by a singularly unlikeable bunch of characters. Tom Hardy and Jason Clarke are little more than a pair of mumbling thugs, Guy Pearce's gun toting dandy is little more than a caricature and Shia Lebeouf once again channels his simpering frat-boy persona …
Rating of
3/4
decent but could of been great
smeagol - wrote on 11/16/2012
decent movie about some olden days bootleggers in the depression days who come up against the cops and the evil guy pearce.out to stop their bootlegging booze, .it has some fine acting from guy pearce and shia labeouf was pretty good and shows he could have a good future if he picks more parts like this. very disappointed that gary oldman only had a minor role though.
Everything was in place for a great movie crime brotherly conflict love & revenge and the evil pearce plus the look of the film and the fine actors. but it never really lived up to its promise. the ending was pretty silly really. oldman wasn't used as he could of been. The mr i am tough older brother was a let down .
overall a decent movie bu it t could of been great.
Rating of
4/4
Lawless, brutal and lovely.
Jake - wrote on 11/04/2012
No, I did not give this 4 stars because of Tom Hardy. This is an enthralling and expertly crafted film about the bootlegging days and the tensions between the law and the outlaws. The performances are stellar across the board, love him or hate him Shia LaBeouf is a talented young actor and he gives one of his greatest performances here. Hardy is also great, as usual, as the brute older brother, always quiet and smooth, but with a hard exterior with a heart hidden beneath is persona. Guy Pierce is deliciously villainous and is Oscar worthy, so loathsome, but so deliciously bad, that every time he's on screen you just want to kill him yourself. He's great. The anachronistic touches are nice as well, like a country cover of Velvet Underground, and Emmy Lou Harris. So it's a crime …
Rating of
2.5/4
Lawless review
Daniel Corleone - wrote on 09/26/2012
This film had potential with the right cast and a better screenplay that would attract audiences of this genre. The story of brothers Forrest, Howard and Jack. Honestly, this reviewer is not totally impressed with Shia LaBeouf's acting, in any movie even as serious as this. Characters were not as interesting and pace felt offish. Soundtrack didn't make a contribution to improve the film either. Direction however was promising and the rest of the cast solid. Screenplay was nicely written with lines: Forrest - "It is not the violence that sets a man apart. It's the distance he's prepared to go." and "We're survivors, we control the fear. And without the fear, we're all as good as dead!" Lawless is worth the look if your into true stories/crime/brotherhood.
Rating of
3/4
Good, Brutal Drama
Alex - wrote on 09/16/2012
Story: I have an interest in U.S. history, particularly from 1915 to 1940. This movie falls in line perfectly with that time frame. Many have seen at least one episode of Boardwalk Empire which takes place in the New Jersey area. This movie takes place in Virginia, on the west side in a rural area. Having a few hard nosed brothers control a town through smuggling moonshine around the county in a brutal fashion makes for a good story.
Musical Score: Nick Cave wrote most of the music. It does a good job of fitting in to the atmosphere. Some of the songs feel a tad out of place and aren't truly hillbilly enough. But, I liked it better than most and it actually helped the movie.
Acting: Surprisingly solid though Oldman's part is almost a waste of space. He isn't in it much and doesn't …
