Small Town Crime (2017) Reviews

• Almost turned it off in the first 60 seconds. Really glad I didn't.

  notfoundmachine2018-01-29

  Haven't made a movie review on here in years, but had to log in to post this. I didn't think this would be my kind of movie, but I loved it. Favourite movie in months. The slow pace picks up so slowly that before you know it you're watching an action movie. My impression at the end was that it was like watching a modern western - set in suburban life instead of a dusty saloon town.

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• ONe of the Best Original Action-Drama movies

  arnuld-mizong2018-01-25

  This is ARNULD again, here to to lift-up your spirits :) I watched it because I thought it was a Budget-Action movie. Well, it was not. This movie was original, had mature acting, original shooting scenes, original dialogues & quite engaging . You become a part of the story. They do not make these kinds of movies anymore . It was serious but not dark, it had funny moments but those were not so funny that they will kill the drama or seriousness of the theme. I consider it one of my favorites. If you are happy then go watch it to become happier. If you are serious then go watch it to admire the theme. Just do not miss it if you like action movies with emotional drama mixed into them.

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• Great noir with a bit of dark humor

  abisio2018-03-18

  John Hawkes is not often found in principal roles; but this movie shows he is perfectly capable of carrying a movie even when he looks like a common person. Hawkes is Mike Kendall; a fired (alcoholic ex cop) trying to get back to the force or looking for a job (both things he is not likely to succeed). He finds a moribund woman on the road; take her to the hospital but she dies. He decided to investigate the crime as a way to do something or perhaps clean himself. Things get complicated; because nothing is really as simple as it looks and many people has skeletons in the closet. Add to the equation a couple of ruthless killers trying to clean up the mess and two pissed of characters ( a grandfather and a pimp; each one for different reasons) and Kendall's own stupidly. While the movie takes a few minutes time to get going; once it is the steam is never lost. The ironic end; is perfectly acceptable. In brief: a very good independent thriller that deserves a public.

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• Funhouse of bloody rural shenanigans

  NateWatchesCoolMovies2017-12-29

  Looking for your annual rural crime/drama/black comedy/character study fix? Well, Three Billboards, which I reviewed the other day, provides that with something more illusory and profound. If you're after one that's a bit more old school and straightforward, check out the Nelms Brother's Small Town Crime, a brutal, breezy thriller starring John Hawkes, an actor I remember from the fringes of the 90's who seems to have gone newly platinum these days thanks to an Oscar nomination for 2010's Winter's Bone. He's hilariously sympathetic here as a raging alcoholic ex-cop who stumbles right into the middle of a murder ring with the crosshairs latched onto a group of local underage prostitutes. Never one to back down once he gets a few cold ones in him before noon, he's on the case between sessions at the dive bar and inebriated joyrides in his souped up muscle car. There's a slightly off kilter, surreal quality to his story and that of those around him, a coming and going sense that these are a cartoonish series of events that aren't really happening, when one looks at the supporting characters. Robert Forster has never been more deadpan or watchable as the tycoon grandfather of one of the slain hookers, a hands-on gent who isn't afraid to dust off his giant scoped rifle to help out. He's joined by outlandish Latino pimp Mood (Clifton Collins Jr., who needs way more roles), both of them assisting Hawkes in his crusade. Even the psychotic hitman (Jeremy Ratchford) dispatched to kill everyone in sight has a distinctly 'out there', roadrunner vibe. But Hawkes anchors the whole deal with the mopey, sad-sack realism of his character, a loser who's dead-end existence has been given a new lease on legacy. His best buddy Anthony Anderson and wife Octavia Spencer give the plot some gravity too, a neat seesaw effect that sits opposite Forster and Collins exaggerated antics. The film has a funny way of both ambling along at it's own pace and jumping out at you with warp speed jump cuts and brazen, bloody violence. The dialogue is pure poetry in areas and knowing camp in others, neatly balanced. Don Harvey and veteran tough gal Dale Dickey have great bits as salty bartenders, while Daniel Sunjata and haggard looking ex-pretty boy (remember him in Monster In Law with Jane Fonda and J-Lo?) Michael Vartan play two local detectives who are always frustrated to be a step behind Hawkes, who plays off the grid and close to the chest. Small Town Crime is a small time film, but the craft gone into bringing it to our screens couldn't be bigger or more commendable from all angles. Highly recommended.

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• A Very Solid Noir Thriller

  leftbanker-12018-01-22

  Perhaps I'm engaging in a bit of grade inflation by giving this movie 10 stars but I wanted to wash away the acrid venom I had in my last review. Imagine how different our current movie landscape would be if instead of the last ten comic book movies we had ten times that many gems like Small Town Crimes. Whatever was wrong with this film-and there wasn't much wrong-it wasn't due to the fact that they didn't have any huge movie stars. Good directors can get good performances out of just about anyone, and these guys are good directors. Well acted and well paced at every step, this was a thoroughly enjoyable 90 minutes.

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