2. Miller's Crossing (The Coen Brothers)
Joel and Ethan Coen have so many cult films under their belts that it seems that you either love them with all of your heart or haven't seen any of their movies yet. Raising Arizona, Fargo, and The Big Lebowski are perfectly stated comedies that most importantly get the cadence of the people at the center of their movies down to a T. Even their period pieces, particularly O Brother, Where Art Thou?, True Grit, and The Hudsucker Proxy, seem to be populated with people that are plucked from the real world. But when their movies are so deeply beloved by people that religions are based off of their teachings (I am told that the Dude does in fact abide, but that's just like my opinion, man) it is easy to overlook their more restrained efforts. I was going back and forth between the Coen Brothers film Barton Fink and Miller's Crossing, they are both excellent and lack the trademark panache of Fargo (which is currently being made into a TV series on FX starring Billy Bob Thornton, who starred in the Coen Brothers movie The Man Who Wasn't There) or The Big Lebowski. But Barton Fink is ultimately a stranger and more disconcerting film, people not watching it almost adds to its mystique, Miller's Crossing is a different story. A gangster film set in a nameless Prohibition-era city in America, Miller's Crossing has a doozy of a plot. Tom Reagan (Gabriel Byrne) is the lead, an adviser to mob boss Leo (Albert Finney) who is protecting Bernie (John Turturro) from an up-and-coming rival mob boss Johnny Caspar (Jon Polito) because Leo is dating Verna (Marcia Gay Harden) who is Bernie's sister. Tom advises Leo to let Johnny kill Bernie, but Leo wants to marry Verna who is secretly sleeping with Tom. Leo finds out about Tom and Verna, so he kicks Tom out of the gang. And that's all in the fast-talking first act. There's a lot going on in its brisk 115 minutes, and it's a miracle that the plot even makes sense, but the Coen brothers deftly move all of their pieces around in a way that is both satisfying and surprising. S teve Buscemi's fast-talking Mink unfortunately is only in one scene, but his essential character is stretched out so well in his one minute of screen time that the rest of the movie falls into place. All of the actors here are incredible, and John Turturro appropriately has received praise for his work in the film, but Marcia Gay Harden's Verna is a sight to behold. The Coens make sure that she is captured in all of her sultry glory, but it is her genuine caring for her brother in a world devoid of affection that gives the film its human spark. Gabriel Byrne's Tom is an asshole who knows he's an asshole, but the fact that he is privy to the information does not change the fact that he is, indeed, an asshole. His motivations aren't made clear because his turmoil is hidden away under his phony bravado, he constantly tries to be the smartest person in the room (particularly when he is alone). Because keeping up with Miller's Crossing is a task in and of itself, the movie rewards multiple viewings. On the third or fourth time watching it, when you are sure that you've figured all of the intricacies of the story, the films breathtaking cinematography and adherence to the period take over. The film may be a bleak statement about humanity, but like Tom it is just too damn smart to lose.