At Close Range (Widescreen/Full Screen)

"At Close Range" is a great film. The story is based on the real life story of killer Bruce Johnson. With the acception of the character's names being chaged, the film features an accurate interpretation of events. It is truly a shame that no one really knows about this film. It features a powerful and emotional tale of an American criminal family. The film is very captivating and draws you in from the beginning. The story is great because it combines a somewhat touching look at a son getting to know his father, with an extremely well thought out crime story. This film emphasizes the term "appearances can be deceiving" because as the story goes on, Brad begins to learn what type of man his father really is. There is also a nice romance aspect to the story because Sean Penn's character meets and falls for a woman played by Mary Stuart Masterson.

Sean Penn and Christopher Walken offer two of their finest performances in this film, which is another reason why it is a shame that no one knows about this movie. "At Close Range" shows that Sean Penn was a great actor before "Mystic River". He nails the role with his perfect portrayal of being rebellious and naive at the same time. Christopher Walken is great because he plays both the loving father and the hardened criminal so well. Walken's performance in this film will give you the creeps. It really was the perfect role for him. Overall, I would place "At Close Range" at the top of the "unknown gem" category. This film is probably one of the best crime films I have ever seen. The story is absolutely fantastic and the actors involved could not have given better peformances.

A solid 5 stars...

Sean Penn plays young Brad Jr who is lured by Brad Sr, played remarkably by Walken, into his gang of thieves. When Brad Jr finds out that the gang does more than just steal, but also murder, he decides to walk out leading the movie to the very frightful and haunting events that followed.

The movie was nominated only for a Berlin International Film Festival award. Why it was not nominated for any Golden Globes or Oscars is a mystery. The movie presents very strong performances from its lead actors as well as the supporting cast that includes Mary Stuart Masterson, Crispin Glover, Keifer Sutherland, and Sean Penn's younger brother Chris Penn.

The movie also has an incredibly bittersweet musical score, taken from Madonna's wonderful song 'Live To Tell'

Very Recommended

A