Gangster Squad. I saw this movie tonight. For those that don't know, it is based on a true story. Actually based on a book about a very dangerous and violent time in 1949. In Essence, Mickey Cohen, one of the most dangerous and violent mafia bosses of all time, controlled the drugs, the guns, the prostitutes and, if he had his way, it would have been every wire bet placed west of Chicago. In order to maintain control of LA Cohen was willing to commit any all all acts of extreme violence. Cohen was poised to make the likes of Al Capone look tame and he had even cut ties with Chicago, because as far as he was concerned, he was God and LA belonged to him, like manifest destiny. Cohen had politicians, judges, and many in the police in his pocket and EVERYONE including the media and the law were afraid of him. It was seen as a deathwish to go against him, because Cohen lived a life of violence, he was born in violence and of course destined to die from it. The movie is violent, but the story is based on violence and a violent time. Everything that happened was never meant to be been told, because of the extremes that the police chief had to allow this special squad to take, allowing them to step outside the law and go to war. It is also rather funny, lots of light moments to break up the action and tense moments. Very well acted, by all the actors, with believable characters. Although it is not 100% true to the story or the book, because of events that happened last year, it is still very down to earth and realistic. However, it's not just a bunch of unnecessary fantasy violence, the violence, is used to tell a violent story, which I thought was from a very poignant yet real point of view. After the World War, the action to clean up LA was seen as a Domestic War, I could even equate it to a domestic war on terror, where extreme actions are taken to remove a blight on society and save millions of lives. This is not a family movie, but it is based on historical events, so it is worth it for those that like action and adventure and a well told story. Justin Taylor
