Successful Men
Friday night’s movie fix courtesy of Netflix by mail profiled one of the 20th century’s most interesting figures, Meyer Lansky, portrayed by Harvey Keitel, in his early 80’s at the time of its release this year. It is a blend of fact and fiction, the story told to a writer during a series of interviews in 1980. Complicating matters is FBI surveillance. The agents in charge long to get their mitts on the legend’s $350 million fortune. Although the pace is slow, I found the details absorbing, especially Lansky’s participation in WWII and on behalf of Israel. I have no idea if these are true, but they aren’t farfetched. The screenplay also raises the question of where Lansky sits on the moral scale. He describes himself as “an angel with a dirty face.” He dispenses a lot of wisdom during the running time, which is just short of two hours. Sam Worthington plays the writer, David James Elliott the main Fed, AnnaSophia Robb the beleaguered wife, Minka Kelly an informant and John Magaro the criminal genius as a young man. Although there is violence, the script is a lot more cerebral than most gangster fare. Familiar figures that have fascinated many are included in the narrative. While it doesn’t soar, it is solid. Eytan Rockaway, a graduate of NYU, wrote and directed the flick, his second full length feature after four short works. His father, Robert, was among the few to get Lansky to speak on record, for his book But He Was Good to His Mother: The Lives and Crimes of Jewish Gangsters. 4300+ users at IMDb have rated Lansky, forging to a consensus of 6.3 on a scale of ten. It was a disaster at the box office, returning only $136,000+ on a budget of five million. My guess is its appeal is restricted to fans of the genre, particularly those interested in the icon, who passed away at 80 in 1983, and of the man who portrays him. Keitel is not done. Despite his age, he has six projects in the works. Here are the leads in character:
RIP Dan Reeves, 77, who was successful as both an NFL running back and head coach in a career spanning 38 years. He was an undrafted free agent QB out of South Carolina, signed by the Cowboys in 1965. In eight years with Dallas he had more than 3500 yards rushing and receiving and scored 42 TDs. The team made the playoffs each of those years, advancing to the Super Bowl twice, winning #VI. He was an assistant under Tom Landry from ‘74-’80, which included a win in Super Bowl XII, then became the head coach of the Broncos. Under his guidance his teams appeared in three Super Bowls, failing to win any. In 1993 he was hired by the Giants, a tenure that began well but ended poorly. His last coaching gig came with Atlanta, whom he quickly turned around, advancing to the Super Bowl in his second year, alas, another loss. His overall record is 201–174–2. He is one of only ten men to have won 200 games as a head coach. He also holds the record for career losses. The AP named him Coach of the Year in ’93 and ’98. He is one of two coaches with 200 wins not elected to the NFL Hall of Fame, the other Marty Schottenheimer. Failure to win “the big one” cost both men. Reeves is a member of the University of South Carolina’s Hall of Fame, the state’s Athletic Hall of Fame, the Texas Sports Hall of Fame, and he has a place in the Broncos’ Ring of Honor. After leaving the field, he did color analysis on Westwood One radio. Well done, sir.
More fodder for sci-fi writers, headline from nypost.com: “Inside China’s terrifying ‘brain control weapons’ capable of ‘paralyzing enemies’.”
The floating book shop was rained out today.
My Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Vic-Fortezza/e/B002M4NLJE
FB: https://www.facebook.com/Vic-Fortezza-Author-118397641564801/?fref=ts
Read Vic’s Stories, free: http://fictionaut.com/users/vic-fortezza
