Jack Goes Confidential: “THE DROP” – A Mob Drama With Heart  

THE DROP is not so much a mobster movie as it is a character study…

And make no mistake, that character is Tom Hardy playing the part of a Brooklyn bartender caught in the middle between the mob and the law.

The film also marks James Gandolfini’s final performance playing the Hardy bar’s previous owner who now oversees the daily drop—sort of a money laundering process for the watering hole’s new Chechen owners.

But a robbery of the bar complicates matters as the Chechen crime lord doesn’t seem–or want—to understand.

Then there’s that matter about an abandoned and beaten pit bull puppy Hardy discovers in a garbage can and which soon becomes his new companion.

And the closer he gets to the dog, the tougher it becomes to give him up when the original owner comes calling. But what is this creep REALLY after? And how does good looking neighbor Noomi Rapace fit into the equation?

Suffice it to say The Drop is not your typical gangster flick – far from it.

Which may be a turnoff for the average moviegoer.

However if you’re a fan of Dennis Lehane’s writings—including Mystic River, Shutter Island and Gone Baby Gone—this mob drama, fresh from the Toronto Film Festival may appeal to you.

Touching on the late James Gandolfini, his evenly tempered and gently paced performance here reinforces what a superb actor that he was.

THE DROP—not for everyone—opens this weekend in limited runs scoring a B-.

(Reviewed at Glenwood Arts Theatre, Overland Park)

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