Miller's Crossing (1990) *****

 

We all have a handful of films that are absolute favorites, and the Coen brothers' “Miller's Crossing” is one of mine.

Gabriel Byrne plays Tom, top advisor to Leo, a crime boss played by Albert Finney. Leo owns the city, but he is slipping. Out of affection for a dancer named Verna (Marcia Gay Harden), Leo is protecting her cheating scumbag of a brother, Bernie (John Turturro), and that protection triggers a gang war. Leo is a complete simp for Verna, who is just using him, so Tom plays both sides against the middle in an attempt to save Leo from himself.

I wouldn't want to give away any more of the plot, which, with all its setups and double-crosses, requires you to pay some attention. It's well worth the time, and worth multiple viewings. This is simply a perfect movie. Gabriel Byrne plays Tom as a cipher, a man of complex loyalties whom we never fully understand. I could write volumes about this character, but in the end I'm still not sure how many of his actions were carefully planned and how many decisions were simply made on the fly. The supporting cast is outstanding, each better than the last, including Finney, Turturro, Steve Buscemi, and others. Really, every actor who crosses the screen in this movie gets a chance to shine.

The thing about writing about a perfect movie is that there isn't a whole lot to say. The plot, dialogue, acting, even the music are golden. If you like gangster movies, you simply have to see it, and if you don't like gangster movies, you will after watching “Miller's Crossing.”

5 stars out of 5