Movie Review - The General (1998)

By Ugur Akinci

This is the story of Martin Cahill, a Dubliner thief who had a long and “successful” crime career beginning while he was only a small boy; a career that lasted until he stepped on IRA's toes.

Watch “The Long Good Friday (1980)” for a similar Irish crime movie in which the main character again has the misfortune of earning too much cash for himself in IRA's backyard. Both characters think they can get the best of IRA in their own ways and both find out the harsh reality only when it is too late for them.

The major difference between the two is that, in “The Long Good Friday” our protagonist is trying to make the transition from being the Al Capone of the East End to a legitimate new British Donald Trump. As a patriot and big town capitalist, his vision is all encompassing. He is a Cockney bent on moving up the social ladder in a hurry.

Nothing can be further from the truth for Martin Cahill. He is a small town crook and master thief who can best be described as the “Tony Soprano of Dublin.” He is comfortable with who he is without any social mobility aspirations. All he wants is money and lots of it to take care of himself and his loved ones without working for it.

His extended family with many kids is live and well and among his circle of friends and neighbors he is loved, protected and treated as another Robin Hood. However, when he robs a famous jewelry company, 100 people are laid off.

Cahill is smart enough to rob houses while their occupants are walking around. He is smart enough to elude the police for many years. However the uneducated master thief is not sophisticated enough to realize his crime spree's collective cost for the community. But this not a movie about any “messages.” It is the biography of a man who meets the end that was rushing at him literally at the speed of a bullet.

Brendan Gleeson's portrayal of Cahill is simply fantastic. He really becomes the character and it is hard to tell which is the actor and which the real MC. Jon Voight also does a fairly decent job playing the Inspector Ned Kenny but the weight of the movie is definitively on Gleeson's shoulder and he carries it very well.

A period-piece crime story with a strong Irish bent. A 7 out of 10.

**************************************************************************

Ugur Akinci, Ph.D. is a senior writer and web content consultant with 20 years of experience.

Subscribe to his FREE "Weekly Success Update" newsletter today at http://www.writer111.com

P.S. FREE BONUS "Writing and Marketing Tips" for new subscribers.

**************************************************************************

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ugur_Akinci