Movie Title: Gangster Squad
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama
Director: Ruben Fleischer
Starring: Sean Penn, Holt McCallany, Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling, Jack McGee, Mireille Enos, Sullivan Stapleton, Emma Stone, Nick Nolte, Anthony Mackie, Robert Patrick, Michael Peña, Giovanni Ribisi, Jon Polito
Review: In late '40s Los Angeles, mobster Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn) runs the city. Determined to end the crime, drugs, and corruption, Det. John O'Mara (Josh Brolin) assembles a team of cops that are ready to take down Cohen and every corrupt official, cop, and gangster on his payroll. "Gangster Squad" is a flashy production that entertains mainly on the surface level, but doesn't have much substance. I was entertained, but I'm having a hard time remembering many of the characters, the scenes or dialogue. For having such a stellar cast and being a hard boiled film-noir thriller it's not very memorable. It was very standard, not much in the way of surprises. I'd surely give it another look. It definitely earned its "R" rating with the language and strong blood violence. If you like tough '40s cop/gangster stories that are action-packed and give audiences what they want then "Gangster Squad" is for you!
Fun Fact: Nick Nolte, who portrays Chief W.H. Parker, previously played the leader of the gangster squad in Mulholland Falls (1996).