Miller's Crossing (1990)

Tom Reagan, an advisor to a Prohibition-era crime boss, tries to keep the peace between warring mobs but gets caught in divided loyalties.

Directors:

Joel Coen, Ethan Coen (uncredited)

Writers:

Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

Stars:

Gabriel Byrne, Albert Finney, John Turturro

4 wins & 16 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gabriel Byrne	...	Tom Reagan
Marcia Gay Harden	...	Verna
John Turturro	...	Bernie Bernbaum
Jon Polito	...	Johnny Caspar
J.E. Freeman	...	Eddie Dane
Albert Finney	...	Leo
Mike Starr	...	Frankie
Al Mancini	...	Tic-Tac
Richard Woods	...	Mayor Dale Levander
Tom Toner	...	O'Doole (as Thomas Toner)
Steve Buscemi	...	Mink
Mario Todisco	...	Clarence "Drop" Johnson
Olek Krupa	...	Tad
Michael Jeter	...	Adolph
Lanny Flaherty	...	Terry

Storyline

Tom Reagan (played by Gabriel Byrne) is the right-hand man, and chief adviser, to a mob boss, Leo (Albert Finney). Trouble is brewing between Leo and another mob boss, Johnny Caspar (Jon Polito), over the activities of a bookie, Bernie Bernbaum (John Turturro) and Leo and Tom are at odds on how to deal with it. Meanwhile, Tom is in a secret relationship with Leo's girlfriend, Verna (Marcia Gay Harden), who happens to be the sister of Bernie. In trying to resolve the issue, Tom is cast out from Leo's camp and ultimately finds himself stuck in the middle between several deadly, unforgiving parties.

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Plot Keywords:

irish mob | loyalty | organized crime | betrayal | character's point of view camera shot | 

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Taglines:

Up is down, black is white, and nothing is what it seems.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

Irish tenor Frank Patterson performance of "Danny Boy" was recorded under the Coen Brothers direction so it would be precisely timed for the scene it plays in the film.

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Goofs

Tom's whiskey glass on Leo's desk disappears after he confesses to Leo.

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Quotes

Andy: Hello, Tom. How are ya? Care to scrape a knuckle on your playmate here?
Tom Reagan: No. Thanks though, Andy.
Andy: Well, if you change your mind, we'll be
[returns to pummeling thug tied to chair]
Andy: interrogating for a while.

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Crazy Credits

The opening credits list production companies, the title, and the main cast. The crew is not listed until the ending credits, starting with a director credit.

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Connections

Referenced in The Old Man & the Gun (2018)

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Soundtracks

Ghirlandeina, Veta Mia
(uncredited)
Written by Domenico Martuzzi
Performed by Mike Starr

User Reviews

Awesome

I was blown away by this film the first time I saw it. After giving myself a couple hours to shake off my dumbfounding amazement, I became addicted. This film has everything. It's witty in its dialogue, suspenseful in its action and violence, beautiful in its cinematography, and (being so like the Coen brothers) it can make you laugh and cringe in the same scene.

The script is superb. The characters are absorbing and the dialogue (as some reviewers have already observed) flows like words in a book. You have to watch some scenes more than once to totally get what's going on, and even then you still might miss something.

The acting is top-notch, even down to the lowest thug. Gabriel Byrne plays the antihero Tom to lonely perfection and Marcia Gay Harden's hooker without a golden heart is excellent. The rest of the cast is great as well, including good mobster Albert Finney and a funny cameo by Steven Buscemi. However, the show is stolen threefold by Jon Polito as the erratic Italian underboss Johnny Caspar, John Tuturro as the slimy "schmatta" Bernie Bernbaum and J.E. Freeman as Caspar's dark, vicious adviser/thug Eddie Dane. Jon Polito's monologue in the very beginning on ethics and Tuturro's desperate pleas at Miller's Crossing are both powerful scenes, and Freeman commands the screen whenever he is on.

My rating is a 10/10. The best part about this movie is that it gets better and better every time you watch it. Oh yeah...the Danny Boy scene is reason enough to watch this movie anyway.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian Irish Yiddish

Release Date:

5 October 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Miller's Crossing

Filming Locations:

Magazine Street, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$14,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$28,202, 23 September 1990

Gross USA:

$5,080,409

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$5,080,409

Company Credits

Production Co:

Circle Films, Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1