Colibel Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

TaryBiggBall It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

Plustown A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Dana An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

kosmasp A criminal stays a criminal? Or can he change? Especially when he so desperately tries to reconnect with his family. Well both of his families. His parents but also his Ex and their kids. But Ghosts of the past are not so easily shaken. So this movie carries a lot of weight (or the main character in this case) and it does weigh heavy even on the viewer.Not an easy task or the most pleasant movie to watch. But one that is intriguing. Does the movie have flaws? Yes it does and some will absolutely dislike that ending. But it is what it is and even without saying too much, it gets the point across at that moment. And while some may have wished for a cut, the camera has to stay and give us the whole picture and the whole - let's call it solution ... Whatever you think, there is Drama, there is tension and it all is played by very fine actors to a degree that make this more than watchable

NateWatchesCoolMovies Netflix's Small Crimes is a bitter, barren, gnarled piece of work that leaves an uneasy vacuum in the air as it passes. If you haven't heard of it yet, that's because the platform does almost zero promotion when new content comes off the assembly line, quietly slipping it onto the site without so much as a TV spot. Some are forgettable, and some are gems that could have done with a bit of buildup. This one is like David Mamet, Cormac McCarthy and Elmore Leonard sipping whiskey sours one cold, empty night and brainstorming ideas. I love the time honoured themes presented here, but what I love and admire more is the filmmaker's courage in completely subverting, perverting and putrefying the formula. There's countless films about disgraced cops, criminals or what- have-you who return home to a small town with designs on putting the wrong things right and finding a modicum of redemption. Thing is, in 99.999% of these films, we end up with a happy ending where all the kinks are ironed out and bygones are left as such, a trend which really cripples the stakes and grinds our expectations down with a blunt, predictable Hollywood ending. Not this one. Nikolai Koster-Waldau, aka Jamie Lannister, is a wiry, cracked out ex con who used to be a cop, before he viciously, and I do mean viciously, sliced up the town DA at the behest of a crime kingpin. Moping back into the county following a six year stretch in the pen, it's inevitable that his very presence will stir up a few noxious vibes. Sure enough, he runs into trouble from all angles, including the vengeful DA (", looking like he shaves with a wheat thresher), a scummy corrupt detective (Gary Cole eats up the dialogue like candy), the mobsters he used to be employed by, and even his parents (Robert Forster & Jacki Weaver), who are clearly broken by the past. There's a feeling of inescapable doom, an inevitable choking quicksand that Waldau wades deeper into, his seemingly noble intent on reconnecting with his wife and daughters gradually ground away to reveal the true nature of his path, and it ain't pretty. Gary Cole has a way with words and mannerisms, and he runs away with his bent cop role, stealing scenes like nobody's business. Forster has salt of the earth gravitas in spades, and nails a near career best scene with clear eyed conviction, nailing our attention to his presence. It's not a perfect film though, there's pacing issues, sometimes it gets a little vague or scattered and a romantic subplot involving a nurse (Molly Parker) seems glaringly out of place. Waldau anchors it though, a twitchy, unpredictable ne'er do well who seems cosmically incapable of getting his act together. The ending floored my expectations and remind that there is hope for fresh narratives and abstract thinking amongst writers. You'll come out of this one bruised, but you'll be glad you sat through the beating.

lesbutchart-31640 To tell you about this movie might affect it's impact, because a good part of its impact is the backstory it doesn't give you until the moment it is needed, creating a process of discovery in a careful unfolding of story for the viewer. This is one indication of the filmmaking craft at its best.Small Crimes is the story of a narcissistic ex-cop, now ex-con, released from prison after a six-year stint for slashing a DA in a drunken brawl. Turns out that his crimes were worse than that, but from the get-go we have the impression that Joe Denton, in a nuanced portrayal by the inimitable Danish actor Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau, really wants to turn his life around, even though he's cursed with a taste for whiskey, and the small town he returns home to is populated by his nasty old crowd.Virtually all of the performances are spot on, but, for me, the film was anchored by Molly Parker, Robert Forster, Macon Blair (the co-writer) and Gary Cole, in addition to Coaster- Waldau in the lead. This film has an evenly-paced start, and I kept wondering when it would click into another gear, though it was intriguing from the first frame; and I loved the way the filmmakers didn't show their hand early, they don't forecast how very dark the movie will become, they just unfold it for you with a sure hand, never getting fancy or "filmic" with the camera. They are letting the story do its work, without forcing anything or trying to wow you with gimmicky visual candy or a score that calls attention to itself. Another sign of solid, sure-handed filmmaking.Small Crimes reminded me of a Cohen Brothers film, or my own film, Lake of Fire. It has a bit of a Gothic feel with a dark-comedy thread, is definitely fatalistic and rather brooding, but also crisply realistic in look, dialog, and acting. I must add that the music does provide some guidance in terms of accentuating some sense of comical irony to what Joe Denton has to go through.At the end of it, I felt that I had experienced a good dose of small town nihilism, but the fact that Joe Denton has a narcissistic, self-destructive personality type isn't revealed until near the end of the film. That detail didn't even need to be provided, but, when it is, you are given a nice clue to his behavior throughout the story — this is the kind of detail you would get in a novel, and I would guess that the rich story fabric of Small Crimes might be due to the novel on which the screenplay was based, and, of course, the screenwriters' talent for knowing how a story should work.For screenwriters, there's a good lesson about the value of using backstory to fill out a story as you go, using it as a story layer to provide a richer understanding of the drama. I think that must be why I like this movie so much: it simply doesn't follow a typical, as in typically contemporary, filmmaking formula. It's an original story and an original, fully realized filmmaking vision. Bravo to all who helped make it happen.I should also mention the power and depth and light that Molly Parker brought to the film in the role of Joe Denton's girlfriend. Here again, you feel the tension of knowing just enough to be intrigued, to sense there could be some hope for Joe, before the final sequence pulls the rug out from under whatever it was you thought might happen.I recommend this film to everyone who loves original indie films and filmmakers who take the craft to heart.

ciprianai The film seems to be building something from the beginning only to come to a confusing pointless end. It doesn't make any sense. Loving parents, by the way. Cheers for not getting all that time back. Too bad the cast, the performances and the technique used to film it had a high standard, although the screenplay is bad. Seems like it has been written by a schizo who got bored at the end.