Any gangster film that can dredge up something so old as to appear almost new again -- namely, cement footwear for swimming -- has done enough to justify itself. A craftsmanly run-through of the most elementary and elemental material, this one (adapted from the E.L. Doctorow novel) homes in especially on the teacher-student relationship of a master mobster and his adopted protégé (pronounced "prodigy"). The themes of listening and watching are sharply visualized, with no need of verbal underlining: young Billy, an Irish inductee into a Jewish mob, is the diligent listener, but he is more watched than watcher. His first trip downtown from the Bronx, to Broadway and Nassau, is a magical conjuration of widened horizons. (Nestor Almendros's cinematography is throughout artful and evocative without flashiness.) And there is a suspenseful scene at the Saratoga racetrack when Billy tries to save the gun moll he has come to love from the ganglord he is sworn to serve. How much more can you expect from a period gangster film? Surely you can't expect Miller's Crossing every time out. With Dustin Hoffman, Loren Dean, Nicole Kidman; written by Tom Stoppard; directed by Robert Benton. (1991) — Duncan Shepherd
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