Bugsy (1991)

Bugsy is a biopic about the "Father of Las Vegas," the WWII-era Jewish gangster Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel. The film takes large liberties with its protagonist's actual life, and, as all biopics do, ends with the main character dead (although, since he's a gangster, we don't have to spend all that time watching him age).

The story isn't great (or historically accurate) but the cast is on fire. Warren Beatty plays the title role, Annette Benning plays his mistress Viriginia Hill, with Ben Kingsley as his boss Meyer Lansky, and Harvey Keitel (wearing an obvious bald wig) as his underling Mickey Cohen.

Beatty is on fire, even playing a Bugsy Siegel who apparently has been neutered of his violent tendancies (the man had a long rap sheet that included most prominently rape and murder) and his infamously short temper. Instead, Bugsy's rage is a triggered event, which infuses the film with some dramatic irony. For instance, when a character calls him "Bugsy" Siegel within earshot, he exudes an implied danger to that person while remaining pretty calm. The other main trigger is stealing, which causes him to get out of control. In what is probably the best scene of the movie he loses it on an underling and forces him to do more and more outrageous actions to prove that the underling is both a scumbag and won't do it again.

That said, it's not a great film, even for it's great cast. Much of the film focuses on Bugsy and Viriginia's relationship and love story, even while acknowledging that they both slept around plenty. It almost feels a little shoehorned in, and unrealistic, as each demands fidelity from the other and is constantly on the look-out for this.

Really, Beatty is the only thing that drives Bugsy forward. His personable charm, his portrayal of the character's odd idealistic eccentricites (such as building a casino in the middle of desert, or planning to assassinate Mussolini as his duty as both an American and a Jew), and the violent tempermant, Beatty is, as always, a charm to watch do his thing.

Usually, I end these reviews with an "add it to your queue" and there's no change here, except to add a caveat: "if you like Warren Beatty." Don't make this your first Beatty film, but if you already appreciate him, then you could do a lot worse than watching this film.

By the by, Netflix sent me the "Extended Cut" which may explain why the movie seemed to drag in places. I'm not sure if they have a theatrical version available, but if you dislike long movies, you might want to look around for one.