CITY OF INDUSTRY (1997) Reviewed by Jerry Saravia RATING: One star and a half
"City of Industry" is one of the most mediocre of heist dramas, but its mediocrity is a shame considering the talent involved. When you see actors like Harvey Keitel, Timothy Hutton, Famke Janseen and Stephen Dorff, along with seasoned director John Irvin, you would think the film would be a tinge superior than the norm. But no, this plays like any kind of shoot-em' up thriller you might catch on cable at 3 am.
Keitel plays a seasoned thief named Roy Egan. He chain smokes and likes to wear an undershirt while sporting sunglasses. His brother (Timothy Hutton) has set up a heist at a jewelry store. The partners include the hot-headed, psychotic Skip Kovich (Stephen Dorff) and Jorge Montana (Wade Dominguez), a devoted family man who is about to go to jail. Jorge is so devoted that he tells his kids he will talk to them about a puppy. Jorge loves his wife (played by Famke Janseen) but not enough to stick around at home and avoid trouble. They all plan the heist perfectly. Then there is the robbery. And, without hesitation, there is a double-cross. Now, most film buffs will recognize Dorff as the psycho who wants all the money to himself. No surprise there. Keitel narrowly avoids getting shot, and wants revenge. He spends the rest of the movie beating people to a bloody pulp and shooting any and anything in his way. A performance built on seething angered looks and occasional outbursts of violence is not what I would expect from the actor who appeared in "Bad Lieutenant."
Keitel's Roy Egan is so stolid and thin a character that I could barely care much about him. At least Janseen invests more passion into her character - you almost assume she could be a real person. Her scenes with Keitel were so good that one wishes the screenplay gave them more to do. Instead we get a few shootouts, an explosion or two, more shootouts, and, well, yawn if you have seen all this before.
"City of Industry" is a straightforward heist drama with barely any of the postmodern irony that has reduced the crime genre to a cartoonish version of itself. Unfortunately, just because this is not the latest Tarantino flavor of the month doesn't make it any better. This movie is bereft of any intelligence, wit or decent dialogue. Keitel basically plays the Terminator, occasionally uttering lines like "I am the police." He is as interesting as a stone sculpture. Only the visually enticing shots of the outskirts of the city have any life to them. Irvin might be saying that all those smokestacks and factories are more alive than the noir protagonists who inhabit this movie. I believe he is right.
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