Name: Retro Film Review: The Funeral (1996)
Item: The Funeral
Rating: 60
Author: @drax

(source:tmdb.org)

Abel Ferrara was never among the best of American directors, but he is one of the most interesting. Unlike many of his colleagues, he is least willing to compromise and each of his films represents the most accurate expression of the director's artistic sensibility. As a result, Ferrara's films are recognisable yet intriguing, even when they deal with seemingly over-exploited subjects. Good example of that is Ferrara's 1996 gangster drama The Funeral.

The plot is set in 1930s New York. Tempio family, whose unofficial patriarch happens to be small-time gangster Ray (played by Christopher Walken) has just suffered a devastating loss – unknown assassin has killed Ray's youngest brother Johnny (played by Vincent Gallo). While Ray's other brother, bartender Chez (played by Chris Penn), becomes steadily insane with grief, Ray is calm enough ponder his options and make difficult but understandable decision - to find and punish Johnny's killers. In doing so he is not discouraged by his wife Jeanette (played by Annabella Sciorra) begging him to end the cycle of violence. Gradually, it becomes clear that Johnny asked for trouble - apart from having affair with the wife of Ray's gangster rival Gaspare Spoglia (played by Benicio del Toro), he had also attended Communist meetings and developed disdain for the way in which gangsters supported capitalists against the working class.

Based on the script by Nicholas St. John, The Funeral continues the trend started by Scorsese's Goodfellas - de-glamuorisation of Mafia. While other films, like Newell's Donnie Brasco, showed poverty and other forms of blue-collar misery in the lower ranks of American organised crime, this film goes even further by revealing the dark side of the phenomenon Coppola had celebrated in The Godfather - family. In The Funeral, the family is dysfunctional and gangsters live in the world of frustrations, doubts, violence and misery suffered by them and their wives and children. To make things even worse, they are even aware of their sorry state and express that through brutally honest talks with people around them.

This aspect of the Ferrara's film is both the most original and the most problematic. It is fascinating to see gangsters seriously think about ethical repercussions of their acts, but it is also hard to accept it when they do it in a way that even the perpetually self analysing intellectuals would never do. What makes this film believable are few strong performances, especially the one displayed by Chris Penn. He plays seemingly "normal" brother who earns his living as bartender but actually hides the madness underneath. His performance is matched by convincing Christopher Walken and enigmatic Gallo who appears in flashbacks. Unfortunately, those flashbacks are poorly edited and because of them the film is at times too confusing. Even more confusing is the completely un-cathartic ending. However, those who are patient enough and can tolerate flaws in films are going to see in The Funeral something which is hard to find these days - gangster drama which is unique.

RATING: 6/10 (++)

(Note: The text in its original form was posted in Usenet newsgroup rec.arts.films.reviews on January 14th 2004)