Tag Archives: Crime

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Snabba Cash (Easy Money) (2010)

Review Snabba Cash

Sometimes you discover trilogies you have never heard of before. This was the case for me with the “Stockholm trilogy”, which is known over here as Snabba Cash or Easy Money. As this is a Scandinavian movie series it isn’t that surprising I had not heard of them as these movies simply do not get as much publicity as American movies. When a movie spawns several sequels, it usually means that the first movie was good (and successful) as movie studios usually don’t put money into something which flopped. Continue reading →

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Paradise Lost trilogy (1996 / 2000 / 2011)

On May 5, 1993 three boys (all of the age of eight) were reported missing in West Memphis, Arkansas. The boys were later found murdered and left in a muddy area in Robin Hood Hills. The police investigated the case and eventually arrested Jessie Misskelley (17), Jason Baldwin (16) and Damien Echols (18). This documentary trilogy looks into the case and makes for a very interesting watch. Continue reading →

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Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (2009)

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt review

It’s been a while since I saw a Michael Douglas movie I enjoyed. A while ago a DVD store near me had a big sale and going through stack and stacks of DVDs trying to find my personal treasures I found Beyond a Resonable Doubt. The cover looked cool, it had Michael Douglas in it and it seemed to be a courtroom drama. Worth seeing right? Continue reading →

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Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father (2008)

Andrew Bagby is a 28-year-old medical student who starts a relationship with 41-year-old Shirley Jane Turner. Although his parents and friends get a weird feeling about it, it seems that she makes him happy, at least for a while. He decides to end the relationship, but it’s something Turner can’t handle and his lifeless body is found in a park. It’s a big shock to his family and friends, which gets bigger once they find out that she is pregnant with his child.

When director Kurt Kuenne, one of his childhood friends with whom he made a lot of home movies, hears the story he decides to make a documentary about Andrew. The goal is that this can be shown to his son Zachary when he’s older. This way he can learn who his father was. This movie is more than just a story about Andrew. It is one of the most emotionally gripping documentaries I’ve ever seen. Continue reading →

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Manda Bala (Send A Bullet) (2007)

São Paulo, Brazil. A city in which an estimated 17 to 20 million people are living and a place where a lot of poor Brazilians move to in the hope to start a better life. It’s a city with a lot of skyscrapers, but a lot of favelas as well. The difference between rich and poor is very big, which has resulted in an extremely high number of kidnappings. Not a day goes by without at least one happening and the ransom is usually very high. To prove that the family needs to pay the kidnappers use violence and it’s “normal” to cut off an ear of the victim and mail it to the family. Continue reading →

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London Boulevard (2010)

London Boulevard isn’t the first gangster movie in which a criminal, in this case Mitchel (Colin Farrell), who has just been released out of prison want to leave his past behind him. “Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in” as the Godfather reminds us. Although more of these type of movies have been made it’s alway possible to tell this in an exciting new way. Is London Boulevard capable of providing this or is it comparable to a TV dinner? Continue reading →

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Animal Kingdom (2010)

After the death of his mother teenager Joshua Cody (James Frecheville) is forced to move in with his grandmother, Janine “Smurf” Cody (Jacki Weaver).
She lives together with her three sons, who are all criminals and suspected of various criminal activities like armed robberies and dealing drugs. The police is constantly keeping an eye on them. It doesn’t take long before the Cody boys involve Joshua in their way of doing business. Will Joshua be able to resist the temptation? Continue reading →

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Handsome Harry (2009)

Harry Sweeney (Jamey Sheridan) is an ex-navy officer who has started his own company in a small town when he left the navy. He has been very succesful and is about to sell his company to retire. He receives a phone call from an old friend, Thomas Kelley (Steve Buscemi) asking him to visit and he agrees. Thomas is very ill and knows he will die soon. They start talking about the past and talk about a subject which they have been silent about for years. Together with some other friends they committed a crime. As his dying wish Thomas asks Harry to find the victim of their crime and apologise to him. For Harry it’s and unforgettable and painful journey into his own past. Continue reading →

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Casino Jack (2010)

Real life stories can succesfully be used for comedies. It’s something which I Love You Philip Morris has already proved. Casino Jack is a comedy which is based on real events, in this case the story of Jack Abramoff, a superlobbyist. As a viewer you are introduced in his world, in which there don’t seem to be any boundaries and in which presents and envelopes with money are just ways to do business. Jack Abramoff is constantly on the edge of what is allowed and makes some decisions which push him over it. Continue reading →