Bonanno Gangster & Crime Family Biopics Reviewed

[00:00:00] This podcast is a production of Unfiltered Studios. If you would like to know more about joining Unfiltered Studios, please visit our website at unfpod.com for more information. We missed. We loaded. We edited. Sometimes we get so deep into conversation that we have separate segments worthy of their own place in the sun.

[00:00:32] Here is a reshuffled mini-episode. Here we go, here we go gang. So, much like all these other crime movie epics, we covered the Gambinos for this fourth week.

[00:01:00] We covered all kinds of other stuff. All versions of the Cotton Club, all versions of the Godfather movies. Scarface, some other Mario Puzo epics, even some video games. We're later going to cover some other stuff like Heat and Analyze This, some Laurence Fishburne gangster films. I gotta go, lo and behold, right on into the Bonanno Crime Family films. I've always heard about them. I knew they were thang. I'm gonna attempt to talk about four key movies that go into them.

[00:01:30] Surprisingly, for a big and rather infamous crime organization, there's not as much written about them, surprisingly. I know, I was flabbergasted as well. I'm like, for such an infamous crime family, there's not as many movies. Yeah, I was surprised too. So, they are an Italian-American crime family. One of the other five families. You know them mainly for their portrayals, you know, like Salvatore Marzano, Lucky Luciano,

[00:02:01] close ties with the Sicilian mob. Around the New York City and Long Island and New Jersey, even Las Vegas, Northern California, South Florida, Tucson. And just again, another Italian gang. Over 195 made members. 500 associates dating back to 1986. 2005, they noted 130 to 145 made members.

[00:02:30] So, yeah, they have other associations. Well, allies with the Cutroni, the Columbo crime family, the Chicago outfit, and the Buffalo crime family. It works. But, yeah, I'm gonna go through a few different movies.

[00:02:49] So, one of the first ones in the 90s to cover them was basically they were doing the Young Guns and Untouchables formula to death, where they were like, hey, let's take your favorite cops and robbers, your favorite anti-heroes and outlaws, have some awesome actors play them, a lot of up-and-coming younger stars, you know, TV and future A-listers.

[00:03:19] We can't get too many of the Brad Packs, but we're gonna get some of them. But I used to see this, I kid you not, just watching old reruns of Mystery Science Theater on Comedy Central. Like, this was another Universal picture movie. And, yeah, talk about Uninspired. This came on stars a lot. A lot of people were like, totally worth it, man, it's action-packed. But it is so forgettable. Everybody sounds the same. Here we have Lucky Luciano, played by Christian Slater.

[00:03:49] He's not as deformed or as unlikable as that character, because we can't have that. Shows how he gets together with Lansky, played by Patrick Dempsey. Again, he's a pretty boy, I get it. Bugsy Siegel, who's been played in other movies. That's right. The same person played by freaking Warren Beatty that same year.

[00:04:19] Never been crazy about that movie, but it does have its fans, and I understand it. It's definitely way better made there. And here we also got Frank Costello, played by Costas Mandalore. Again, he and his brother, Louis Mandalore, have been on all your favorite movies and TV shows. Louis Mandalore you might know from shows like Martial Law. That's right, that kung fu show with Arsenio Hall and Sammo Hong.

[00:04:48] That was on CBS for a while. It was awesome. As well as the My Big Frat Greek Wedding franchise. He's since been in a lot of B action movies with the likes of Scott Atkins, Jason Patrick, and what have you. So with his brother Costas here, he hasn't been as successful. He's had some recurring roles here and there. Unfortunately, he is Mr. P-movie.

[00:05:16] He's done so many softcore thrillers, all the Saw movies as this crooked guy who has to basically just kill other people to stay alive. So that might be what people know him from now. He started off with Triumph of the Spirit, which is an excellent boxing drama post-Holocaust with Edward James Olmos and William Dafoe. That's so emotional.

[00:05:44] He was on the UPN show, Secret Agent Man. He's had some other recurring roles. Unfortunately, bad movies know how to find him. I am never surprised. You might know him from the HBO premiere of the anime adaptation Fist of the North Star. Red Shigiris Craters. Zalman King's Delta Venus, which he's good in. He's done some other schlock B-movies.

[00:06:15] He's been in the gangster indie gangster film, Turn of Faith. Which has a decent cast, including Charles Durning and Tony Sirico. As well as The Real Deal. Hitters, also with his brother. He was in the eavesdropper, which had a lot of X-Files and Star Trek actors.

[00:06:43] He's done, he's then pretty much goes back to doing stock footage movies for Fred Olin Rage and Wynorski and Roger Corman types. As well as Sci-Fi Channel movies. And probably the most mainstream you've seen him is a bit part in The Pledge, that Jack Nicholson noir film directed by Sean Penn. He was one of the many animated guys in Robert Zemeckis' Beowulf.

[00:07:08] But yeah, it's pretty much been directed video movies and saw from that next three decades. He's done some other appearances, but yeah, I can't name any of them. He seems like a decent actor. He's in that Law & Order TV movie Exile. He's on the TV show Players. That's co-starred Ice-T. He's had good guest appearance.

[00:07:36] His main big role for TV guys would have been playing Officer Lachos, who was Lauren Hawley's romantic love interest on Picket Fences. So he had his boy next door look, and yet he never got too big. But let me go for the rounds because this is more interesting than the movie. He had recurring roles on Resurrection Boulevard, Seventh Heaven, NCIS, and even the most recent would have been The Last Ship.

[00:08:05] So since then, he's also, you know, TV roles would have probably where you've seen him the most. Guest spots on Tales from the Crypt, The 90s Outer Limits, Andromeda, Sex and the City, Nash Bridges, Bass Lane, She Spies. So he's going back into B-movie territory even when it's more mainstream.

[00:08:33] Then by the 2010s, he has some way more classy stuff like The Closer Spinoff, The Major Crimes, Once Upon a Time, and some TV movies. Then the most recent stuff has been guest spots on Hawaii Five-0 and The Lethal Weapon Show.

[00:08:48] So again, if they need a bad guy who can, and that's what's so wild is he and his butter are like from Australia, and yet haven't stuck with it. He seems like a nice guy. I don't know. I think he's acceptable, but don't get me wrong. I've seen him in plenty of other movies where he didn't give much of a performance because the movie sucked. So yeah, he's in here. There's some okay gunplay.

[00:09:19] It's pretty much notable for me as being one of the few mainstream roles I've seen Robert Zadar in. As you know, he had a 39-year career in film. He was best known for all his heavy roles because he had that rare skin disorder that made his jawline big to where you could only see him playing a henchman.

[00:09:43] And this is one of the few mainstream roles he had other than Tango and Cash and the Maniac Cop films. But yeah, that's the only thing I can say about it. He plays a memorable henchman. There's some other bit part actors. Chris Penn is good. Andy Romano is another that guy 90s actor. Rodney Eastman. Lauren Finn Boyle. Titus Williver does okay as Al Capone. Again, that's freaking Bosch right there. You know him as The Man in Black and Lost.

[00:10:14] A lot of Ben Affleck's movies like Live by Night, The Town, Gone Baby Gone, and Argo. It didn't stand out. F. Murray Abraham was good, but I don't know, man. He's done way better in those Roger Corman gangster films. That's how ridiculously better used he was there. He's in The Legend. He's got in some Me Too trouble, unfortunately. But whatever.

[00:10:41] Again, this isn't the first time we've seen Arthur Rothstein be portrayed. He was also in the baseball movie Ape Men Out, played by Michael Lerner. As well as... Yeah. He's named... The protagonist in Casino is named after him, but he's really actually supposed to represent the fixer Lefty Rosenthal.

[00:11:07] So I'm pretty much... I don't hate this to say something like Boardwalk Empire, but this is still pretty disposable. Anthony Quinn is like the only big name. Again, we're seeing a pattern here. Him being some of these gangster movies before he leaves us. But yeah, Patrick Dempsey doesn't get anything to do.

[00:11:31] Christian Slater brings the most life, especially near the end when they all shake hands and have a toast to their friendship and partnering in crime. But yeah, the movie barely has a screenplay. The director, I don't know anything else he's done. Nicholas Kazan. Who, yes, is the son of Elia Kazan. Nicholas Kazan just... I think too many cooks in the kitchen.

[00:12:01] He just isn't able to develop Michael Mayhern's story. Steve Roth, I know nothing about him. Yeah, man. It was pretty much like the trailer where everyone was pretty much like, Hey, I don't remember who's in this. I do know it's a violent movie, but even the violence doesn't stand out. So the Gorehounds would be disappointed there too. Yeah, it got a DVD release. But yeah, the only thing interesting is it opened up at number two behind Terminator 2, but didn't make a profit.

[00:12:29] I wonder why, because it did get all the Razzies. And this is where it's just stupid. I hate the Razzies. Roger Ebert was somewhat kind with a half, you know, two and a half out of four star review saying that the shoddy script and model storytelling and self-important direction and bloodshed just was a mess. But it got a cinema score. That's the audience score of B.

[00:12:55] So someone out there has probably seen it just, you know, cheaply edited on TV, like on something like UPN or USA Network. But I don't recommend it at all. I've rarely seen it on TV just because I think there's just too many shootouts. But yeah, when you come out in the same month as Terminator 2, you're not going to make any money.

[00:13:19] Yeah, I guess this might be interesting in that it gets you interested in all those four main infamous gangsters, you know, set during 1917 to 1931. But yeah, semi-fictitious is putting it nicely. Yeah, it's connecting the dots. But I wasn't expecting accuracy from this one. And again, that's the only thing the trailer did not do it any justice.

[00:13:47] But the poster art did make it clear. This is going to be like the Untouchables or Young Guns did with Westerns where we're going to have these got, you know, popular stars who are rising play these current guys. Now, to be fair, it's not bad. You know, it's not overrated like Boardwalk Empire where everything's predictable if you know anything about the history of these guys.

[00:14:10] And it's not schlocky or absolute rubbish like Gangster Squad was where you have all these cops and robbers and no one gets any screen time with, you know, a studio overcutting a director who's doing an over-the-top depiction of, you know, historical fiction, if you will. And so I knew this was historical fiction, but at the same time, like no one has given anything to do.

[00:14:37] Even Richard Grieco, who I feel sorry for, Mr. Former 21 Jump Street, you know, Booker, has pretty much constantly stayed in Made for TV, Direct-to-Video-ville. And this movie definitely was one of the last theatrical films he ever made. I don't think he's a bad actor, but he knows how to pick a stinker.

[00:14:58] He is pretty much, I feel like he, Vivica A. Fox, and Billy Zane have the same agent, even though Vivica and Billy are way more charming actors. So, yeah, this is just so wild, seeing a mixture of Scorsese and Tarantino types, and then Shakespearean types, and then heart-frobs, all in this stinker of a movie. But whatever, let's move on to the more promising one. So, Love, Honor, and Obey.

[00:15:27] So, I've made it through better this time. I didn't care for it the first time, but it's got a big deal. This is by Rosalie, based on a story by Rosalie Bonanno, who wrote the, this is her autobiography, Mafia Marriage. It's, yeah, Love, Honor, and Obey, The Last Mafia Marriage. This was a CBS free hour, you know, two-part TV movie.

[00:15:53] The main reason I wanted to see it is the husband is played by none other than Eric Roberts. Ben Gazzara is Joseph. Alex Rocco is Uncle Frank. There's some other who's who character actors. Peter Juracek, who you guys will know from Babylon 5, is the priest. Italian legend Thomas Milan is here.

[00:16:16] Frank Pellegrino, as well as Dylan Baker, Gina Phillips, are in here. Yeah, this didn't leave much impression. The dialogue varies from melodramatic to acceptable to that's okay, but I don't know if that's meant to be, if that needs to be tuned up a little more.

[00:16:39] I just like, it just feels like these guys are talking in a cliff notes, like college lecture, summing up why they're doing this. They're expo dumping instead of talking naturally. So, TV completists might have seen it replaying on something like USA or Lifetime. This is, you know, many are going to know Nancy McKeon from The Facts of Life and The Division. So, she's tough here, but they romanticize it.

[00:17:08] They do end it with basically just flat out just saying, yeah, so this is how these families reunited and these people knew they were initiating into a crime family. And, really, the only scene I would watch is the one scene where Bill, you know, Eric Roberts' portrayal is basically saying to Rosalie, you know, you're absolutely the only woman I ever wanted to marry, I've ever had sex with.

[00:17:36] When she's talking about, you know, it's a sin in the Catholic family to have intercourse before being married. And he's like, you know, trust me, you're the first person. I'm still a virgin married to you. So, there's interesting stuff like that, but it feels, again, like it's trying to both be a romantic movie for couples as well as sum up crime stuff.

[00:18:02] So, unless you are a completist and like these actors, I, maybe if you're doing laundry, you might like it. I don't think you need to check it out. So, let's go with arguably the best movie on this list. Time has not been kind to this. No, I'm not saying that because a problematic actor like Johnny Depp is in this. Not at all saying that. I'm saying this because this movie is just so, this was so awesome when I saw it growing up.

[00:18:30] But I always found that it was, it just didn't hold up on repeat viewings. There's good editing by John Gregory, good, an okay score by Patrick Doyle. So, cinematography creates a suspenseful feel by Peter Sova. And Mike Newell, this is literally the only movie I've liked by him. He has since sold out by doing other stuff like Four Weddings and a Funeral. Chick flicks and fantasy and other infamous movies.

[00:19:00] 2012's Great Expectations, The Prince of Persia, awful movie. Love in the Time of Calera, which was not a good book adaptation nor a good movie. And the dark comedy Pushing 10 and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. So, yeah, no. He has not been a great director. This is literally the only movie where I feel like it has any flair. Paul Intonazio has a somewhat electric but very cliche-ridden script.

[00:19:29] You know him as the award-winning screenplay adapter, quiz show, the unofficial. He's credited, but not technically the creator of Homicide Life in the Street. He is also known for doing infamous rewrites of better movies, including Town and Country, The Bourne Ultimatum, Air Force One, Armageddon, and Speed. He has written for House, as well as created the show Time with Eddie Falco.

[00:19:57] But, honestly, his best scripts, I personally think, are Spear and Disclosure, the Barry Levinson productions, as well as The Sum of All Fears. Anyway, yes, this is worth watching. So funny. When I told you guys about the Gambino crime family, I had a co-worker who was all into mobster movies. He wanted to make one. He loved that genre. He even suspected his dad left him for a life in crime. Talk about life imitating art. But, yeah, he was a big fan.

[00:20:26] I could talk to him all day about Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola, but he didn't like cop shows unless they were something like he. And he actually admitted to me, you know, he loved Gotti, the 1996 movie, and he found Donnie Brasco disappointing. I was like, whoa. So, I think Al Patino is well restrained here. This is definitely the same year as Double-East Advocate, where he's way hammy there, even though that is a better movie, I would argue.

[00:20:55] Bruno Kirby is overused as Nicky Santora, who was the underboss of the Bonanno crime family. I dig Michael Manson the most as Sonny Black. He gets some awesome kills and takedowns. We have other who's who of actors before they were famous. Gretchen Maul, who you might know from Rounders on the 13th floor, who's still working today. Terry Serpico from Army Wise and SVU and Designed Survivor before he was known as the strip club owner.

[00:21:26] But the best actor by far, the most memorable performance is Robert Maiano as Sonny Red. He gets a good betrayal. You've known him from everything, from Death Wish to Girls Trip to China Girl. He's done the works. He's done plenty of Michael Mann, Abel Ferreira productions in between all the various made-for-TV movies and directed-video nonsense. He's guest-starred as a gangster on Star Trek Deep Space Nine.

[00:21:57] And even narrated some documentaries and religious films. He's always unrecognizable to his credit. He's guest-starred various times on TJ Hooker. He's had other guest spots, including everything from Walker, Texas Ranger, to The Shield. Awesome motherfucker. So this is literally his best role to date. So I do like this one. I do. I really do. Is it in my top 10 gangsters or top 20?

[00:22:27] Must-see gangster movies? Not at all. So if anything, I like this movie because it brought more attention to the subject. Donnie Brasco, which is the codename of undercover FBI agent Joshua Pistone, who has so many other dangerous stories that deserve to be adapted. But in all honesty, they're so convoluted, they would be so hard to adapt unless you had a wonderful, like,

[00:22:54] you know, visionary filmmaker or just were allowed to do a miniseries. So yeah, when I first saw this, this was one of those, it was like a lesser version of American Gangster. And I know some people don't like American Gangster. I like American Gangster a lot, despite it having some missteps by Ridley Scott. This one, you know, I thought it was a solid like seven and a half out of 10. Nowadays, it's kind of a six just because it is so fucking cliche.

[00:23:24] We've seen it all. So had this been one of the first and had some more just way more snappy, like editing, I think it would have been good. Now, to Mike Newell's credits, it's like it's in that mix between a Scorsese. Like he's definitely imitating some of the style of something like Mean Streets and Goodfellas. A little bit of trying to outdo the F-bomb counter of Casino.

[00:23:50] But it's also kind of a real life point break, if you will. So it is trying to imitate that whole narc genre. It's trying to make both audiences happy. I think it does it pretty well. It's another very mainstream role for another B-movie actor, James Russo, who you will know from being the mugger and best times at Ridgemore High. Eddie Murphy's best friend who gets killed at the start of Beverly Hills Cop. He's been in other stuff like The Cotton Club, Cold Haven, State of Grace.

[00:24:22] And this was just one of his other more mainstream movies. He is another good actor. You've seen him in The Postman, probably. You've seen him in some other HBO, USA Network movies. He's unfortunately a big B-movie actor, but much like Rob Riano, I like how he's not restrict even Mikey on The Sopranos. I like how those guys are all able to do more than just play cops or FBI agents.

[00:24:46] They're also able to play lawyers, crime scene technicians, best friends. But the most mainstream roles you guys might have seen him in is one of the cowboys who gets killed at the start of Django Unchained. He was also in Miss Bala, the original version, not the awful remake. And he's done plenty of other stuff, whether it's play just defendants or victims.

[00:25:12] He's never been just, you know, every day, you know, I'm Italian. So therefore, I can only play, you know, shady producers or gangsters. He has had some other time in the sun. He was on season three of Chicago Fire, for God's sakes. He's a pretty good actor. And unfortunately, he's just not that well known.

[00:25:33] You might have seen him on Miami Vice or Crime Story or even The Equalizer if you're an 80s movie guy or Michael Mann completus. But yeah, he has unfortunately not enjoyed as many successes, even though he's constantly working. But he's good here. And Hetch is okay as Donnie's wife. But this is where it becomes kind of a sausage fest, kind of a guy's movie where she's there to kind of he's there to just have sex with her.

[00:26:04] And she's just an undeveloped character. So it just I roll my eyes each time. It's not graphic, but it's just a whole, oh, embrace me. Oh, have sex with me because I never get to see you. It's like, yeah, this marriage is not going to last. It's a who's who actors, famous people. We got Ziltsko Ibanec as lead FBI agent Tim Curley. What a strange name. You've seen him on as being, you know, Emmy winner on Damages.

[00:26:32] He was in that guy who was in that thing movie. Other movies include Black Hawk Down, Unfaithful, Die Hard 4, The Born Legacy, Seven Psychopaths. I light up every time I see this motherfucker. He's a great actor. You've seen him as one of the evil mad scientists on the 12 Monkeys TV show version. He was recently on The Walking Dead, Dead City. I will always love him as the governor on Oz. Dennis Hopper's evil son and partner in crime on the first season 24.

[00:27:00] He was on Heroes and Big Love for a bit. His best role would probably be Banshee or even as the prosecutor guy on Homicide, Life in the Street. And the chief of staff on Madam Secretary, that Tia Leone political drama that's really underrated. So respectable actor. He's been on every show a gazillion times. Always brings a hundred. He's a little underused here.

[00:27:24] I did dig how Tony Lip, that's right, the late Tony Lip, who was mobster Francesco Manzo in Goodfellas. He was an extra on the Godfather movies. But we will always know him as Carmine Lupadazzi on The Sopranos. He's the one guy with glasses who's always offending everybody by accident and starting. They're trying to prevent him from starting a turf war.

[00:27:50] But he was dramatized by Viggo Mortensen as the bodyguard and driver for pianist Don Shirley in Green Book, which was written by his son. So I like that movie. We'll talk about that another day. Some people think it's whitewashing. I think it's just one-sided. I don't think it's a whitewashing movie. Kiss my ass. Yeah, so he gets a good part here as Philip Lucky. He was good there.

[00:28:20] But, I mean, I forgot that Tim Blake Nelson was one of the FBI technicians. I always remember Paul Giamatti, who was in here, and he's really awesome as the whole, you know, he's trying to make sure, you know, play it. The best part of the movie is easily when they put all the mobsters in separate rooms and they're all, you know, unintentionally ratting each other out. Stupidos. Stupidos. But that's how they were at that time where they're, you know, they've separated them and they can't put two and two together.

[00:28:50] They're like, hey, where's Dottie? He didn't rat us out. No, no, no, he wouldn't. So there's also Dr. Berger, played by Zach Grenier. You've seen him in movies like Fight Club and Tommy Boy and Deadwood, another character actor who's reliable. There's also some other Italian who's who actors, much like those other Bonanno and even Gambino movies.

[00:29:15] It's interesting seeing what actors who are in something like Grand Theft Auto or even a robot chicken type show doing Italian voices. And some of them have live action roles here because they fit the mold. But yeah, no. So it was based off the 1988 book by Joseph himself, you know, Donnie Brasco, my undercover life in the mafia. So Stephen Freres was originally going to be the director.

[00:29:41] But when Goodfellas was released, the planning of the film was pushed back and he was adamant about Al Pacino playing lefty. So that was the only thing he contributed before being replaced. So I kind of wish he had done this because he can do a damn good crime movie like The Last Hit, you know, The Long Good Friday. And I mean, he did The Queen, for God's sakes.

[00:30:07] He's way better with period epics and getting great performances. You've seen him do comedies like High Fidelity, dark comedy, crime films like The Grifters, Dangerous Liaisons is great. He's a good filmmaker. Gets great emotional stuff. Dirty, pretty things. Yeah. So I don't I think he would have been a way better filmmaker. He would have had a way bigger payday, way more critical acclaim had he done it instead. I don't know why he didn't.

[00:30:36] It would have been way better in my humble opinion. But what do I know? So every good filmmaker has at least one good movie in this. This was just acceptable. But it's basically because of the production and budget. It only slightly feels above TV level. It feels like it just needed more kinetic energy. It is absolutely one of Johnny Depp's best movie roles ever.

[00:31:07] It's not as good as Blow. I will say that. But don't get me wrong. Johnny Depp. Terrible person. Great actor. So yeah. It's up there with Pirates of the Caribbean, Nightmare on Elm Street, Edward Scissorhands, and Gilbert Grape, and Sleepy Hollow. No problem. But if you like more of his crime and action roles, it's definitely up there with Blow,

[00:31:34] and Nick of Time, and Dead Man, and 21 Jump Street for sure. He was a dynamite actor, and it's such a fucking shame that I can't talk about him without getting involved with his garbage lifestyle and stupid mistakes that anybody would know better. So let's get to the last movie on this list. Let's talk about Bonanno, A Godfather Story. This was definitely the second movie I saw.

[00:32:01] It is based off a script by many members of the family. It's both Sergio Lally's A Man of Honor that he wrote with Joseph Bonanno, as well as Bound by Honor, Bill Bonanno. So it's directed by Michael Roulette, what a strange name, who's done some Canadian stuff and other Italian films. This one looks the most like, definitely like a God,

[00:32:30] trying to have that Godfather Mario Puzo look. Even a Michael Cimino kind of movie look. So definitely borrowing Godfather type gaffing or suspense. The cast is awesome in this, but none of the characters they have are properly brought to life, either due to limited screen time or just average dialogue, or just it doesn't stand out. They're not given enough time to leave an impression.

[00:33:00] Everybody's in here. Freaking Carlo Rota from, you know, Chloe's husband from 24 is here. You might know him as the one gangster executed in the Boonock Sinks. Jessica Parr has a brief role here. You would know her from Mad Men and Steel Team. And we go into all kinds of other actors. Robert Lojo is the main reason I wanted to watch this in the first place. Everett James Olmos isn't able to do much. Mark Camacho, who you might know from Punisher Warzone. Everybody.

[00:33:30] And Patti LuPone is in here briefly. And Vince Carrazza, who's another gangster typecast actor. Costas Mandalore is the main guy. Salvatore Bonanno. Morizano is played by Everett James Olmos. So he does his best. You know, a Latino actor playing an Italian. Martin Lando gets to play Joseph. You know, the later version of him. Joseph Bonanno at age 94.

[00:34:00] Yeah, it did not leave an impression. It really didn't. Thomas Michael Connolly has done all kinds of other low budget and cliche and bad movies. He's done stuff like the USA Network movie Blindsided. The low budget Jan Michael Vigilante movie Defiance. As well as Quicksilver, which Kevin Bacon always thought was his worst movie ever. And he's done some other good ones. He did A Soldier Sweetheart.

[00:34:30] That Kiefer Sutherland Vietnam movie. Showtime. He's done Tout for the Game, which was an okay baseball movie that you might see on MLB Network. It's Edward James Olmos joint. So there you go. They worked together. So they worked together. Here again.

[00:34:47] He's done The Garden of Redemption, which sounds very interesting, which is about a priest struggling with religious belief as he sees his Italian countrymen slaughtered and attracted to a woman operating in the resistance. So, yeah. He's done his share of decent TV movies for cable and premium channels. So, yeah. This movie just didn't take. It was kind of...

[00:35:14] And it wasn't even as interesting as some of those other Mario Puzo adaptations. Just... I thought it was just a slog. It just... Despite being an ambitious free hour lifetime TV movie, it's just... None of the kills stand out. The pacing sucks. And the acting just was so underutilized. You might... The only reason you're going to watch this is for the actors. Unfortunately, I think I last saw it on Reel's channel a while back and it just...

[00:35:44] It didn't have anything to latch onto. Again, the actors are fine. It's just they didn't use the best edits or there just wasn't any flow. Or, again, they were probably too busy trying to get it done. So, if you want a better Godfather-inspired thing, I would go with The Last Dawn, which is Mario Puzo fiction. This, unfortunately, feels too much... You know, it could... I actually love the Sassoon and we'll defend that one.

[00:36:13] This felt a little too much like The Fortunate Pilgrim where it had a cool cast. I was so busy trying to get it done that it didn't bother to have any fun. So, yeah. I don't know what to say other than avoid, avoid, avoid. It just... Unless you want to talk about that, you know, with your friends or you are a completist, I don't think you need to bother with this at all. So, hope that was fun. There was one quarter of those was really good.

[00:36:43] Two of them were like mild curiosities and one of them was just real doozy, this last one. So, hope you were entertained. And so now you know some key... Well, no, I take that back. Banana was not as bad as Mobsters. That one sucked. But this one, this was average. So, whatever. One quarter of them was good and that's Donnie Brasco. So, hopefully you enjoyed this and we'll see ya with another week after Godfather Week is done.

[00:37:12] Talking about some other awesome movie franchises, video games, sagas, and addicting TV shows. But we do enjoy the listeners. There's been a severe increase in listens. And I applaud everybody who, again, just listens in. It really does mean a lot. And if you could just leave some Apple or Spotify reviews just telling us what you thought, that would mean the world to us.

[00:37:41] We would truly appreciate it. Tell us how we're doing. And maybe we can meet at a convention someday and host a movie panel. That'd be a lot of fun. But let us know, seriously, how we're doing. And hopefully we entertained your earbuds. We'll return after these messages. Hi folks, Hal Pack here. We've got a 90-minute weekly Shack Stop. It's growing all over the world.

[00:38:11] Find it at 2 p.m. and 10 p.m. Eastern Time on Mondays. Then 3 p.m. on Wednesdays. Then 7 p.m. on Thursdays. You can catch it on many more radio stations. 99.9 KERB. 1 p.m. Central Time. 2 p.m. Eastern on Mondays. Then catch the Encore on Thursdays at 5 p.m. Central Time, 6 p.m. Eastern.

[00:38:36] Then catch it Wednesday mornings at 11 a.m. Eastern Time, 10 a.m. Central, 1077 K-Twins. Then hang out with us Wednesday afternoons on MXTR and Hal Shack Radio, 3 p.m. Eastern Time. Then Thursday, get up bright and early with us on 95.7 Web Radio at 6 a.m. Pacific Time, 9 a.m. Eastern Time. Of course, we've got your Friday covered as well.

[00:39:04] 12 p.m. Eastern Time on MXTR FM. And 10 p.m. Eastern Time, 9 p.m. Central, 1077 K-Twins. Find everything on HalShack.com. Hal Shack. Welcome to the Better Call Daddy Show, the number one podcast where we admit no matter what happens, Daddy has the advice we need to fix our problems.

[00:39:31] Introducing my dad, Mr. Wayne Friedman. That was good. It would be nice if you could also sing a song. What would the song be? You love Paris in the springtime. I just made up some words to it. I love Rena in the springtime. I love Rena in the fall. That's right. That's good enough. What I do is interview people of interest, share it with my dad, and get my dad's advice. My dad is my hero. Nobody's got my daddy. Oh boy. Let's go to Grandpa. You like to be a little rebel.

[00:40:01] I tried to rein you in. I have a daughter named Rena that acts just like I did. She's got a son that is not only just like me, but it's just like her. I'm your host, Rena Friedman Watts. Invite your friends, subscribe, and I'm excited to take this journey with you. Let's dive in. She was teasing this guy with the sword, and she accidentally cut his dick. Oh my God, I'm dying. And then he started to enjoy it. I started going down the phone sex rabbit hole. You've got the wankers, and they jerk off in five seconds, and then they're done because

[00:40:31] A, they don't want to spend money, and B, they're quick. My stepfather had mania. If I'm yelling at one of my kids, that fear, that rigid fear. Mom even said to me, I hope you have a kid just like you. There are lots of people that are being bought and sold right now for profit. If you think you're going to kill yourself, shut up and kill yourself. If you're not going to kill yourself, then shut up, smarten up, and it's all on you. The bullshit has to end. Wow. When I was 11 years old, I was raped and molested over the course of a year.

[00:40:59] What Jeffrey Epstein had was a sickness inside of him. I am Evan Castrilli Carmichael. I could do anything that I believe that I can. I'm so excited, too. Let's go. Next on Better Call Daddy with my mom and my grandpa. Stay tuned. Follow us on the web on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

[00:41:29] The podcast is available on Podbean, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Anchor, Apple, and anywhere else podcasts are available. Feel free to review our show and leave comments on any of those sites. Thanks a million for listening. It's a jackdaw. Review show. It's a jackdaw.