Tom Reagan is the laconic anti-hero of this amoral tale which is also, paradoxically, a look at morals within the criminal underworld of the 1930s. Two rival gangs vie for control of a city where the police are pawns, and the periodic busts of illicit drinking establishments are no more than a way for one gang to get back at the other. Black humour and shocking violence compete for screen time as we question whether or not Tom, right-hand man of the Irish mob leader, really has a heart.
The Coens' take on Depression-era gangster flicks, looks gorgeous and showcases John Turturro's best acting ever.
TV Guide
November 06, 2007
It takes place in an artificial world constructed largely from the mythology of other movies, and, though it's both seamless and stylish, some find it a little too self-conscious for its own good.
While Miller's Crossing is not as messy or inspired as Martin Scorsese's GoodFellas, or as richly suggestive as The Godfather, it accomplishes exactly what it sets out to do.
Parallax View
May 01, 2011
It has always been one of the special pleasures of movies that they dream worlds and map them at the same time. Miller's Crossing dreams a beaut...
Loosley based on Hammett's novel and Chicago's Capone-O'Bannion gang war, the film is more impressive visually than thematically, though new angle of placing Irish, Italian, and Jewish gangsters in the same tale is intriguing.
