The Yards

Rating:
Summary: Who Cares?
Review: Okay so Mark Wahlberg just got out of jail and it is obvious from the lighting and the tone that he will quickly do something that could land him back in the can. But what will it be? His old best friend is Joaquin Phoenix and he usually plays a sordid character and his new uncle is played by James Caan, a nortorious good guy. So how could Walberg find trouble around these guys? Let me kill the suspence...there isn't any.

This movie was trite and boring. On one hand I have no idea how James Gray got this cast on this film. Perhaps they read a different script than the one they actually made the movie out of. On the other hand once they committed to the film the performances were good. Especially from the female supporting actors, Faye Dunaway, Ellen Burstyn, and Charlize Theron. They played the women who had to put up with the men. Wahlberg, a good actor who has picked some bad films, is solid here, as is Phoenix and Caan. I would not totally dissuade people from seeing this film, but this is pretty much a vehicle for someone who has a taste for these performers. I thought it was a yawn.

Rating:
Summary: The most boring movie in the history of man
Review: Okay, there might be one more boring than this, but not one that comes to mind as quickly. This is like watching paint dry, or worse. There are plenty of fine actors in this film, and they all act well, but the pacing is horrible--you will dread every time one actor enters the room and starts to converse with the other, because it takes about 10 minutes every flipping time, with long pauses between every meaningless word. The story could have been excitingly portrayed--a family crime history, big city politics and corruption, etc.--but the way it is done here is truly coma-inducing. Avoid this movie like the plague.

Rating:
Summary: boring, boring, boring ...
Review: Realistic presentation, good actors, good acting, but the total result is a flat, boring movie. No surprises, slow, everything is predictable. You can give it a try or just skip it, you won't miss anything.

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating character study though clearly not for everyone
Review: Some films simply seem to divide people. The Yards is such a film. As the plot has been hashed over in these reviews many times, I won't go into it. What I will say is that The Yards almost perfectly captures it's subject matter. Everything about the characters, the locations, etc. FEELS like modern day Queens a little bit south of the right side of the tracks.
Mark Wahlberg, as the central character, gives what I think is the performance of his career. The melancholy and regret that he brings to his character, who has recently been released from prison for a stupid, youthful "crime of exhuberance" will draw in anyone who likes getting inside the head of strong, silent characters.

This is a complex psychological drama without a single loud bang or crash, so those who require such pyrotechnics to be entertained will probably be very bored. Having noted that, for those who can slip easily into the rich interplay of about a dozen different perfectly acted characters and into a realistic and fascinating description of one aspect of modern day organized crime, the Yards is a real treat. Every character, no matter how minor, has an arc of their own, and every character, whether ostensibly "good" or "bad" can be understood and sympathized with. Far from black or white, The Yards lives in shades of gray, much like we all do.

Recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating character study though clearly not for everyone
Review: Some films simply seem to divide people. The Yards is such a film. As the plot has been hashed over in these reviews many times, I won't go into it. What I will say is that The Yards almost perfectly captures it's subject matter. Everything about the characters, the locations, etc. FEELS like modern day Queens a little bit south of the right side of the tracks.
Mark Wahlberg, as the central character, gives what I think is the performance of his career. The melancholy and regret that he brings to his character, who has recently been released from prison for a stupid, youthful "crime of exhuberance" will draw in anyone who likes getting inside the head of strong, silent characters.

This is a complex psychological drama without a single loud bang or crash, so those who require such pyrotechnics to be entertained will probably be very bored. Having noted that, for those who can slip easily into the rich interplay of about a dozen different perfectly acted characters and into a realistic and fascinating description of one aspect of modern day organized crime, the Yards is a real treat. Every character, no matter how minor, has an arc of their own, and every character, whether ostensibly "good" or "bad" can be understood and sympathized with. Far from black or white, The Yards lives in shades of gray, much like we all do.

Recommended.

Rating:
Summary: GRITTY NOIR THAT MOODILY TRIPS ON ITS HACKNEYED LINE
Review: Ten minutes into the film I was drawn into the noirish pace and presentation, and a theme of how inconvenient life is when someone who's tainted as an ex-convict wants to straighten himself out. The feeling of paranoia is well achieved, partly because of the brooding score and very well-toned cinematography.

But what kills the movie is its derivative story -- the strinking semblance to Godfather, City Hall, Heat, James Caan's own The Thief, and about a hundred other crime capers is hard to overlook. To make matters worse, the plot is also sloppily constructed such that it can't resolve itself without losing its grip on the tension that it creates.

James Caan is sharp as he brings his snakey charm into the role, come to think of it, all actors do very well to maintain the general grit, including a power-crazed Joaquin Phoenix and the good-hearted criminal Wahlberg.

But about halfway through the movie the denouement already peeped out, making the rest of the proceedings merely a formality. Probably a decent rental for anyone who likes crime procedurals with family businesses going over the top in tandem with public officials, but not exactly an astounding achievement in cinema.

Rating:
Summary: Wahlberg, Phoenix & Theron Top Notch But Unrelievedly Grim
Review: The acting done by the above named actors is simply superb. That they figure in a romantic triangle together is even better. However, this tale is mostly about the characters' inability to avoid a life either directly in crime or allied to it. As such, it is unrelievedly grim and may be offputting to viewers on that basis alone. I can't help comparing it to "Requiem for a Dream," that dealt with much more horrific material, every character's descent into drug hell. However, whereas this film was linear and almost plodding at times, "Requiem for a Dream, was so artistically done and with such imaginative cutting edge storytelling techniques, that its grim subject matter never sunk it. James Caan is in here playing the lead gangster for perhaps the one zillionith time since his Sonny Corleone "Godfather" days. I am really tired of seeing him in this role film after film after film. I just groan when he comes on the screen in "the role."

Rating:
Summary: A sober look at corruption and consequences of choices
Review: The movie almost seemed like a docudrama. I've been wondering whether or not the film is based on actual events. It's definitely a character piece even though the characters are very stereotypical. That being said however, it is extremely well acted and honest. Plus the fact that the direction is very low key only added to the genuiness of the film.

And like other viewers had commented, I also thought that the plot development was pretty predictable (except for the ending which took a couple of surprising turns) but who cares. It was engaging to see the drama play out.

Not a puchase or a divine creation but definitely intelligent and dramatic.

Rating:
Summary: UNREALIZED POTENTIAL
Review: The prospect of the film had me salivating with anticipation. Mark Walberg, Charlize Theron, Jacquin Phoenix, James Cann, and Faye Dunaway all star in a film that revolves around the corruption, bribery, danger, and violence that accompany contracting with the New York Train systems. Unfortunately the potential of such a combination of cast and plot was never realized.

Walberg is Leo, a recently paroled car thief (who was probably innocent of course) trying to find a job in the family business. His Uncle Frank (Caan) wants him to learn a trade and eventually be a machinist. Leo wants a quicker source of income and goes to work for the business with an old buddy (Phoenix). Trouble quickly ensues. Leo realizes the large scale corruption in the business and he gets caught up in and accused of a crime he didnt committ. To top it off Leo seems to have an unhealthy attraction to his cousint (Theron) How he does or does not escape this dilemna is the finale of the film.

Aside from a stellar performance by Jacquin Phoenix, the cast is rather flat from lack of plot and character development. Most of the big names (Theron and Dunaway especially) are underused. The plot is lackluster until the final half hour of the film. The movie is not a complete stinker and there are definately some moments of worth. It was worth a rent but there are a lot more films worth my buying dollar.

Rating:
Summary: Box office bomb proves to be watchable
Review: The Yards is a movie you are almost bound to have missed. Its distributor, Miramax, put very little effort behind it. I don't know why. I just have to assume they had their reasons. It is neither the best nor the most original movie around, but it also is far from dreadful. It is a good example of the fact that all movies that bomb at the boxoffice are not bad ones, just as all hits are not good movies.

Leo Handler [Mark Wahlberg] has just been released from a New York state prison, where he served time for auto theft. He is returning to his mother's apartment in The Bronx. Leo is determined to stay out of trouble. The problem is that he isn't the brightest guy on the block. He gets an interview with his aunt's latest husband, Frank Olchin [James Caan], who runs a company that services the trains for the New York subway system. Willie Gutierrez [Joaquin Phoenix] is Leo's best friend and has been working for Frank for some time. Frank politely suggests that Leo go to machinist school for a couple of years. After that, he is welcome to work for Frank. This doesn't satisfy Leo's need for an immediate income, and he can't understand how Willie, who didn't go to school either, works for him. It turns out that Willie's job is a not very nice one that pays very well. He is the one who greases the palms of various officials and who sabotages the work of other companies so that Frank can get more business. Willie tells Leo to hang out with him to see how the operation works. One night a terrible incident puts Leo and Willie, as well as Leo's family, in great jeopardy.

This is a fairly dark movie. It is about how people inadvertently get in too deep and about how your friends and family can turn against you when their security is threatened. Its themes are not ones which lead to a happy ending, although The Yards manages to end on a hopeful note.

The basis of this story has been done several times before. It is the cast that makes The Yards so watchable. Mark Wahlberg is excellent as always, and the fact that this ex-teen pop singer made the transition to serious actor still amazes me. Joaquin Phoenix and Charlize Theron are two of my favorites performers. Theron doesn't have a big role, but Phoenix does. He makes the most of it. It's always a pleasure to see James Caan, Faye Dunaway and Ellen Burstyn. They've been around so long it's like seeing old friends.