Gangster Squad

[AndrewH]

In 1949, Los Angeles is under the control of Mickey Cohen, a ruthless gangster from Chicago. The chief of the LAPD is powerless against Cohen, so he calls upon his top detective to lead a small team of officers in their own war to take down the baddest wise guy in town. Sound like the plot of a pulp fiction novel? Well, you'd be right. This movie may have quite the talent (Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling, Sean Penn, Emma Stone, Nick Nolte, the list goes on), but that can't save it from mediocre writing and a script riddled with more cliches than bullet holes. Everything sure looks pretty, though. You never doubt for a second that you've been transported back to the 1940's thanks to the film's ability to recreate a bygone era.

Then again, The Godfather also had this ability, and that film has stood the test of time while this one certainly won't.

Overall rating: C