Gangster Squad

Granted this is not a book, but who can resist writing an amateur review on a Ryan Gosling movie? At least I can't. Gangster Squad asks the question, "how far would you go to maintain justice in the city of angels?"



Gangster Squad. A movie that will make you flinch, laugh, cry, and  want to see it again. Josh Brolin is a star as the leader of a squad commissioned to take out the gangster Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn). Penn is, as always, a formidable character - someone who has a certain mystique that's inevitably charming, but still carries the sting of a character you don't want to mess with in any capacity - romantically, sexually, or any type of business partnership.

Within the first 30 seconds of the movie you see a man with his hands chained to one car and his legs chained to another. Within the first minute of the movie he is torn apart and his guts are left in the middle of the scene while Cohen looks over the situation as calmly as a child goes to sleep. This sets the tone for the movie. A group of men are determined to take down a threat (Cohen) that they believe will forever tarnish the future of their beloved city. They are willing to put their lives, and the lives of their loved ones, on the line so as to take down a man with no morals - just goals and ambitions. Mickey Cohen pledges his allegiance to himself, while the men destined to take him out pledge their allegiance to their badges, to their country, and to the future of their children. The movie features strong women, vulnerable children, and men struggling between what must be done to stop evil and what means are acceptable to stop that evil. If in the process of stopping a bad man, do you become a bad man yourself?

Overall, I wish this movie put in a bit more details concerning the romance between Ryan Gosling's character and that of Miss Emma Stone, because let's face it ... who doesn't want to see that gorgeous man romance a woman and potentially take his clothes off? Besides that little fact, this movie featured a lot of humor, and some definite cringe-worthy moments of violence. All of the actors were spot on in their performances and  I would recommend this movie to people who are fans of the traditional gangster films. The film begs the fundamental question of what makes a hero a hero? Watch the movie to find out and judge for yourself.