— Benjamin Walker as Abraham Lincoln from Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, 2012
You are Here » Reviews » Review: The Iceman
June 12, 2013
Share
0
Review: The Iceman
— Posted by
Andrea Lestrange
![]() Genre: Real-life Thriller
Stoic, silent, scary, superb Shannon. Michael Shannon flourishes as endearing, yet psychotic, creeps, and The Iceman is no exception. If looks could kill, my God, he would need no weapons. His role as real-life hit man Richard Kuklinski is another example of why you would not cross this face of steel and hollow eyes, yet still find the capacity to feel for him.
I enjoy a good movie ‘based on’ actual events and I think it’s a great way to expand your historical horizons on potentially unfamiliar subjects, minus the hefty schoolbooks; plus the entertainment. The Iceman depicts the true (but adapted) story of Kuklinski as the cold-blooded murderer beneath the good family man. Seriously, you know a fine killer when your wife and kids don’t clock your alias for the entire duration of your career…or maybe they just enjoyed the highlife too much to give! I mean, who in their right mind marries a man with a grim reaper hand tattoo, and thinks nothing of it? Kuklinski unbelievably impressively conceals his double life for over two decades, until the very swift end of his reign. He does all he does for the love of his family; don’t most murderous family guys? In ways, his relationship with his daughters can draw in comparisons to doting-dad Don Tony Soprano and his daughter Meadow; the protection, the innocence, the impossibility of killing a woman or child.
The movie was a good watch, however at times it seemed a little jumpy and incoherent. Perhaps the disorganization was, at times, due to the 20 year span of the plot, which carried little smooth flow of the core story over the decades. A flashback to Kuklinski’s childhood flittered so quickly on screen that if you were reaching into your pick ‘n’ mix you’d have missed the part about his dark past. Pretty important. However, this short shot got lost in the present; a couple more of these flashbacks would have emphasized the reasons behind his ways. Although the movie was enjoyable and an interesting insight into the life of a hit man, and not focusing on the internal intensity of the mafia, it sometimes casually breezed over scenes without naturally flowing into the next. Sometimes I felt a lack of substance, possibly because there was no single pivotal memorable moment that matched the strength of Michael Shannon’s performance.
This post was written by :
who has written 82 posts on The Movie Blog I love to write about different types of film - from blockbusters, to indies, and documentaries. I enjoy exploring and discussing different themes and angles, with a light-hearted edge to keep things fun. I am based in London, and currently looking to pursue a career in the film industry. visit author's website | Contact the Author Around the Web
ZergNet
|
|