Directed by: Luc Besson
Starring: Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Tommy Lee Jones
Plot: A mobster and his family are moved to France as part of witness protection.
Review:
Robert De Niro is one of the best heavyweight champions of acting. It is undeniable, as undeniable as is his recent slump. Last year was a good year for him though. He got a much deserved Oscar nomination for his work in Silver Linings Playbook, one of my favorite movies of last year, while giving some De Niro caliber performances in movies that did not perform at the same level (Being Flynn and Red Lights). The Family is a lot like the latter 2 than the former.
The old days
De Niro plays Giovanni Manzoni, now going by Fred Blake in witness protection, protected by a grumpy and dry humored Tommy Lee Jones. He is a grizzly man withdrawn into himself spending most of his time lounging around the house in a bathrobe. While on one hand he seems to be happy for some of the redundancy of normal life, he definitely misses the power and dignity he felt came with being a made man. He is reliving those glory days writing his memoirs and strong-arming French policy makers into doing something for the people for once. He even occasionally has day dreams of hurting annoying people.
Meanwhile, Pfeiffer as his wife Maggie and John D’Leo as his son Warren have no problem torturing those who dare cross them. Pfeiffer does it with a cold straight face and a dry wit she throws in De Niro’s face, but that accent gets a little annoying. D’Leo on the other hand is a smooth operator reminiscent of Ray Liotta’s Henry from Goodfellas (a movie that makes a funny cameo). Unfortunately, the teeth are removed a bit from the violence, adding up to more Looney Tunes anvil dropping than killer instincts.
The new days
The family dynamic is almost ruined by daughter Belle, played by Dianna Agron. When it comes to inflicting pain, she holds her own, but her views of love, sex, and purity are creepily old-fashioned and out of place. There is nothing wrong with wanting your first time to be special, but she gives off a serial killer vibe who has a notebook of victims who didn’t love her enough. While the rest of the family know what they are doing is wrong, yet do it anyway, she is down right psychotic making her actions seem way too melodramatic.
Director Luc Besson has a lot of great pieces here: a decent fish-out-of-water story, an impressive cast with mobster movie pedigree, and a good set-up for an ending shootout. Unfortunately, he can’t fasten them together well enough for an outstanding movie. It flirts with greatness, and while nothing actually misfires, it is missing a lot of connecting tissue and plot momentum to grab hold of your attention.
Rating: 6/10
