Written and directed by David Grovic. This one was rough to get through. The dialogue was corny, and I got the feeling
the actors knew it. I got nothing from the performances of De Niro and Cusack. And i want to be clear, the issue is the material.
The woman was treated like garbage by every man in the movie. The scene where the cops were threatening to rape her if Cusack didn’t give up the location of the bag was cringe inducing. I'm sure "that was the point" but it I didn't feel sympathy for her character, she had been dehumanized too much by that point. She felt like she could only exist as a movie character, not as a human. Throw in the characters who keep telling her “Shut your hole.” Obviously a double reference since she is a prostitute and the men have to correct her bad behavior.
Here's an example of the poor dialogue: “Give the master of the game a better game." Most effective if you goal is confuse your opponent.
During the final fight, De Niro randomly claims Cusack hasn’t read Sun Tsu’s Art Of War. Maybe the poorest bad guy taunt ever.
I only had one shot stick with me:
This is when De Niro is talking to some lady early in the film. I say some lady cause she is useless to the plot otherwise. It’s a long shot of his office with her head low in the frame really emphasizing the opulence of room. The symmetry is immaculate and it effectively conveys De Niro's success in the business.Along with the scene in the private plane, this is some of the best, and only, character development in the movie. I can't recommend The Bag Man.
The woman was treated like garbage by every man in the movie. The scene where the cops were threatening to rape her if Cusack didn’t give up the location of the bag was cringe inducing. I'm sure "that was the point" but it I didn't feel sympathy for her character, she had been dehumanized too much by that point. She felt like she could only exist as a movie character, not as a human. Throw in the characters who keep telling her “Shut your hole.” Obviously a double reference since she is a prostitute and the men have to correct her bad behavior.
Here's an example of the poor dialogue: “Give the master of the game a better game." Most effective if you goal is confuse your opponent.
During the final fight, De Niro randomly claims Cusack hasn’t read Sun Tsu’s Art Of War. Maybe the poorest bad guy taunt ever.
I only had one shot stick with me:
This is when De Niro is talking to some lady early in the film. I say some lady cause she is useless to the plot otherwise. It’s a long shot of his office with her head low in the frame really emphasizing the opulence of room. The symmetry is immaculate and it effectively conveys De Niro's success in the business.Along with the scene in the private plane, this is some of the best, and only, character development in the movie. I can't recommend The Bag Man.