State of Grace (1990)

'State Of Grace' is a well-crafted gangster film from start to finish. From the appropriate saint-paddy's day parade opening-scene to the legendary parallel montage in the end, and everything in between. A fairly lengthy film, SOG never bores but sucks you in and though it doesn't stray far away from the basic gangster genre plot lines and characters, it's got a very own feel to it. This is due to the great Morricone score and the witty dialog, SOG is hilarious at times but overall takes itself seriously. Morricone's soundtracks are legendary for a reason and though this is certainly not one of his best, it does add a lot of class to the picture. I'm sure many of you will agree that the music is very reminiscent of his work in The Untouchables and even more so his work in Once Upon A Time In America (the greatest thing Leone has ever accomplished). The recurring theme always stirred up feelings of nostalgia and a melancholious sadness with me, it quickly gets under your skin and stays there for the rest of the movie. It goes well with the themes of hearth ship and longing for the happiness of youth often appearing in the script.

State Of Grace isn't just a run in the mill gangster movie with a memorable score. The comparison with other genre classics, especially 'The Departed' is unavoidable, and this may just be the right-after-credits-exhilaration (I'm sure you know what I mean) speaking but in my very humble opinion it simply outclasses Scorsese's latest baby. A huge factor here is the cast; Oldman delivers a knock-out-of-the-park performance as the greasy-haired nut case gangster and both Penn and Harris are memorable too. Being a huge Penn and Oldman fan, I can't believe I didn't discover this film sooner. Torturror's role is small so fans, don't get too excited when you see his name.

State of Grace is definitely a genre movie, but not 'just' a genre movie. It belongs to the top of the cream and should be recognized for it.

9/10