The Iceman (2013)

I remember that a some years ago I first heard the story of Richard Kuklinski, a hitman for the mafia who has admitted to have killed over 100 people. He was interviewed and this was a man who talked about his killings without showing much emotion. He sometimes made strange movements with his jaw while talking, but besides that you’d think he was just talking about the weather. He got his name not because of his lack of emotions (even though that also fits him nicely), but because he sometimes froze his victims in order to make it impossible for the coroner to discover the real-time of death. Even though he is no longer alive, his fascinating story has been turned into a movie starring Michael Shannon.

The movie introduces him before he was connected to the mafia and show that he was someone who had a hard time controlling his temper and made sure to have revenge if he didn’t like something. The first example is an argument about money in a pool hall. He waits for the man he’s had an argument with and simply slits his throat. To make money he works in a porn lab, copying movies and it is through this work that he is noticed by a local mob boss, Roy Demeo (Ray Liotta). Once he has proven his worth he becomes the go to guy if someone needs to disappear.

The Iceman shows various of the hits Kuklinski did and also the ways he did it. He had various ways to reach his goals and it seems him meeting Mr. Frosty (a hitman who would normally sell icecream), who is played by an almost unrecognisable Chris Evans. The two teach each other even more efficient ways to perform their murders.

The question though is whether this gangster movie succeeds in telling Kuklinski’s story. It shows that Kuklinski is a man who only cares for his wife and two kids (who don’t know anything about his work) and also shows that he had no problem in murdering people (although he refused killing women and kids). Michael Shannon is as good and convincing as ever and enough reason to check out the movie. As for the story itself though it kind of disappointed me. It shows quite a lot of murders and spent too little time on really developing all the relationships and characters, which is a shame. There is a small part in the movie where one of the men who works for Roy Demeo decides to do a drug deal the way he has in mind, but because you do not know much about this guy (a role played by David Schwimmer who unfortunately doesn’t seem to be able to shake his image as Ross from Friends) you don’t get a sense of the consequences his actions might have on all the relationships. After watching this movie I also watched the interviews Kuklinski did with HBO. If you do so you will probably appreciate the authenticity of a lot what is happening during the movie. I just wish I would have cared just a bit more about the characters as I really wanted to like this movie, but ended up slightly disappointed.