Favorite Films of All Time, No. 23

 


In 2022 I'm revisiting my favorite films of all time, doing a countdown of the Top 50 throughout the year. Check back each Friday for the latest installment in the countdown of films, which include releases through 2019. Agree? Disagree? Have a thought on the choice? Be sure to share in the comments below!

Leo O'Bannion: Dammit, Tom, I forgive you!
Tom Reagan: I didn't ask for that and I don't want it. Good-bye, Leo

Miller's Crossing (1990)
Starring: Gabriel Byrne, Albert Finney, John Turturro, and Marcia Gay Harden
Director: Joel and Ethan Coen
About: No one tells stories like The Coen Brothers. When I was in college, I was exposed to a few of their films and it set me on a path of going through the cannon. When I hit Miller's Crossing, their fourth feature and one of the least talked about films, I was enraptured. The dialogue. The story. The shots. The performances. It all hit me strongly and I was hooked. I enjoy many of the Coen Brothers films, but two of them are on this list. The first of those is Miller's Crossing. It's a gangster flick, sure. It's also part of a stretch of films in the 1990s that I think was the peak of the Coen Brothers run. It was a film they struggled to complete. In fact, Barton Fink, the story of a writer with writer's block, was born during a time when they struggled to finish Miller's Crossing. Whatever the pains it took to craft and film the story, it was more than worthwhile. The film is fun, compelling and unexpected. I enjoy the story and the way it's told. Byrne is perfect in the lead role and I love his back-and-forth with Finney, Turturro and Gay Harden. It feels like many haven't found this film, but I hope more will find it through this column and enjoy it. 

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