mafia Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Something tells me that the true-life movie about the infamous murderer Richard Kuklinski is about to take a turn in creative direction, judging by the latest to news to come from the NY Post. The Post is reporting that Mickey Rourke will be taking the role of Kuklinski in an adaptation of Phil Carlo's book, The Ice Man: Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer. The scoop came courtesy of Carlo's himself, who told the Post "He's [Rourke] really looking forward to being the Ice Man, and I think he'll do a great job,...He's talking about it being his 'Raging Bull.' Originally, it had been reported that Channing Tatum of G.I. Joe fame would be taking the lead, but according to Carlo, Tatum is out and Rourke is in.

Richard "The Ice Man" Kuklinski was a notoriously brutal contract killer and serial murder, who claimed to have killed over 200 people in his lifetime, starting at the age of 13. Kuklinski put his 'talents' to good use by working with the Gambino crime family, and died in prison at the age of 71. The circumstances of his death were considered suspicious and it was rumored that he had been killed by a Gambino underboss by the name of Sammy Gravano.

Back in 2007, the Hughes Brothers had been attached to the project with producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura in possession of the rights to Carlo's book, but unfortunately the project stalled in development and the rights have lapsed. Carlo was looking for a new producer, and according to him, that producer will be Rourke. Now it just so happens that Carlos in the midst of a publicity tour for his latest book, so we might want to take his announcement with some healthy skepticism.

After the jump: My top 5 recommendations for some other movies about hit men...

Goodfella, Raging Bull, and Taxi Driver Robert DeNiro is reportedly attached to star in The Winter of Frankie Machine. Brian Koppelman and David Levien are writing the adaptation of Don Winslow's novel; they wrote the poker classic Rounders, as well as the upcoming Ocean's Thirteen. Frankie Machine is about a former mob hitman/Vietnam vet who has put his gangster days behind him and now spends his time surfing when he's not busy operating a linen service, a seafood company, and a bait shop. And for two hours, he sells worms to fishermen and his past never comes back to haunt him? Of course not! When the son of a mob boss asks for Frankie's help in settling a dispute with another mobster, Frankie agrees. But soon he finds he's been set up and is next on the hit list. The story is said to deal with both Frankie's current adventure and also with him trying to figure out what in his past got him into trouble.

The Latino Review has the story here and a script review here. The reviewer calls it "the leanest, tightest script I read so far this year," and "a masterpiece," adding a little something you never heard from Pauline Kael: "The shit is hot." This does sound like a really cool story, and the book has earned several comparisons to Elmore Leonard's stuff, which is really all I need to hear to get on board. Sounds like a blast, and here's hoping it's got a touch of black humor to it, all of the best mob stories do. I don't need to see DeNiro in a wet suit surfing while firing a machine gun, but with this premise, it sounds like there's a lot of potential for some dark laughs. Regardless of how it turns out, I think we can all agree that it's got a pretty badass title. Color me interested in this one!

If you're as addicted to those mini courtroom drama/mystery docs on channels like A&E, Court TV and MSNBC as I am, then you most likely caught the one-hour special on Richard "Ice Man" Kuklinkski. For awhile, he was a contract killer working with the Gambino crime family and, by his own account, did away with as many as 200 people. If you managed to catch the TV special, you immediately know why they call this guy Ice Man; he's cold, calculated and could care less about any of the lives he took. To make matters worse, the man kept his job a secret from his wife and three children. (Right now, some therapist is making a lot of money off those poor kids.)

Producers Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Jason Blum have picked up the rights to Philip Carlo's book The Ice Man: Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer, for brothers Allen and Albert Hughes (From Hell) to direct. Prior to his death in prison (while serving two life sentences), Kuklinski openly talked about his murders to folks like Carlo and his book is primarily based on those conversations. Currently, both producers are searching for a writer and, though they have first-look deals with Paramount, they are waiting to fully package the pic before setting it up at a studio. It will be interesting to see how everyone involved goes about tackling this story -- I mean, do they expect us to feel sympathy for their main character? I imagine they will work the whole FBI angle into it, and also focus on those who finally caught up with Kuklinsky. If not, get ready for one heck of a downer, folks -- this guy is (or should I say, was) one rotten dude.

In Italy, it's generally assumed that almost everything is a little bit corrupt. This is a country, after all, where the former Prime Minister controlled much of the country's media and pushed through parliament multiple laws to protect himself from criminal prosecution; virtually nothing gets done without connections, small bribes, or simply ignoring the rules (which no one seems to follow anyway). It's also cynically assumed that there's a degree of truth in even the worst mutterings about the country's institutions, from its fabled soccer league (where the suggestion that referees help Juventus win was recently proven true by wiretaps) to its government.

Because of those circumstance, it surprised almost no one in the 1980s when the Mafia began to take over Palermo, Sicily. What was surprising, however, is that something was done about it: Magistrates Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino led a virtually unprecedented crackdown, and as a result of the "Maxi Trials," hundreds of mafiosi, from foot soldier to general, were brought to justice and convicted; briefly, Palermo was reclaimed. In 1992, Falcone and Borsellino were spectacularly murdered by the mafia for their troubles; in the words of a weeping older magistrate, "E finito tutto" -- the fight was all over.