Gangster Squad (2013)

“The whole town’s underwater. You’re grabbing a bucket when you should be grabbing a bathing suit” – Sgt. Jerry Wooters

Number of Times Seen – Twice (3 Mar 2013 and 20 Jan 2021)

Brief Synopsis – A team of cops are banded together in order to try and stop the rise of gangsters in LA during the 1950’s.

My Take on it – This is a film that has a nice premise, but the way that they present things makes it feel like a far inferior version of The Untouchables (1987).

The film has a talented cast and it’s fun watching them as things play out.

Josh Brolin and Sean Penn are both great here even if they both play things slightly over the top.

The plot and story don’t flow very well which is slightly problematic.

They fail to develop any of the characters on either side of the law in a more than superficial way which make sit even harder to care about any of them or even to root for either side as things move along.

The film has some nice cation scenes, bu there are so many other gangster movies that do things so much better than they manage here.

The pacing of the story is slightly off and there are far too many scenes that feel as if they are running in place instead of finding ways to have things move forward in a more engaging and enjoyable fashion.

Bottom Line – Interesting idea that looks like a poor man version of The Untouchables (1987). The cast is fun to watch and both Brolin and Penn are superb in their roles. The story itself doesn’t flow very well and the characters on both sides of the law aren’t developed on more than a superficial level. The action scenes are fine, but there are many other gangster movies that do things so much better. The film’s pacing is slightly off and that hurts things a bit too much because there are far too many scenes that feel as if they are standing in place instead of moving forward.

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Officer Daryl Gates (Josh Pence), Chief W.H. Parker’s driver, went on to become the Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department. LAPD headquarters, called Parker Center, was named for his former boss. (From IMDB)

Rating – BAFTA Worthy (6/10)