The Drop Review

Drop The Cover, Let It Simmer

Directed By: Michael R. Roskum

Starring: Tom Hardy, James Gandolfini, Noomi Rapace

Release Date: September 12, 2014

Written By Brian Maya

The Drop is a slow simmer crime drama following the life of Bob Saginowski, a seemingly simple man who tends bar at his cousin Marv’s in Brooklyn, NY. Bob lives a secluded life, spending most of his time attending mass, alone at home, or at the bar serving up liquor. Bob’s bar is just one of many bars that participate in laundering money for the local gang that holds the neighborhood through fear. One night the bar is robbed and unleashes a cycle of events that increasingly demystifies the secret lives of both Bob and his cousin Marv.

Most films cater to the action heavy storylines that audiences eat up (including myself), however, The Drop is a film completely relying on dialogue and imagery in order to tell it’s story. Some film’s fail to truly deliver a compelling tale only using these weapons, but writer Dennis Lahane absolutely delivers. The Drop, in its own way, delivers a pulse pounding story. Often times encounters, that would in most films turn violently quickly,  were allowed to play out and caused me to feel tense, anticipating an altercation. All the glances, and uncomfortable silences lead up to a revealing moment that is truly satisfying.

Tom Hardy leads a top-notch cast with James Gandolfini, and Noomi Rapace. James Gandolfini delivered a great performance as Marv for his last appearance in film. Noomi Rapace was, to me, almost unrecognizable as she portrayed a friendly young lady with an equally dark past as Bob. She performed brilliantly and shined with Tom Hardy, who also played a character so vastly different from Bane in The Dark Knight Rises. His Brooklyn accent was on key as well as his mostly low-key and shy persona. Each actor truly captured your attention and created characters that were down to earth and believable.

I loved the craftsmanship of character development. Each character felt relatable, and real. Bob and Marv were simple men seeking a simple life that got quite complicated very quickly. Often times it is the small seemingly insignificant choices that bring our downfall or helps us rise above the rest and reach catharsis.

At some points, The Drop lost me, delving into an array of subplots that confused more than clarified the information given. Some plots at first seemed extremely important only to realize later that they held less significance to the over-arching themes.

Despite the confusion, The Drop is a fantastic film featuring interesting characters and plot leaving me wanting more.