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10th & Wolf
Directed by: Robert Moresco
Starring: James Marsden
Genre:
Drama
Run Time: 107 min.
Release Date: April
2006
On The Web:
Unofficial Site
Teaser:
Movie Trailer
Reviewed by: Byron
Merritt |
If you've seen DONNIE BRASCO, you've seen parts of
10TH &
WOLF.
Here we have Tommy (James Marsden, X-MEN: THE LAST STAND) trying to set
his life straight. After finding out that his father was a hit-man for a
local boss, Tommy soon sees him gunned down on the street.
Twelve-year-old Tommy never forgets this and once eighteen, joins the
marines and is whisked off to the Persian Gulf. He fights the war his
country tells him to fight, only to learn that they can't go into
Baghdad and capture Saddam in the end. Tommy loses control of himself,
hits an MP, and steals a colonel's Jeep. Now in hot-water, and facing a
court martial, he is shipped back to the brig in the U.S. where he's
approached by Agent Horvath (Brian Dennehy, COCOON) of the FBI. Tommy is
told that what remains of his family is in danger. His brother Vincent
(Brad Renfro, GHOST WORLD) has fallen in with a friend's "business."
This friend is Joey (Giovanni Ribisi, THE GIFT) who's attempting to
become a boss of his own. The hitch is that Joey also saved Tommy's life
once, and Tommy loves Joey like a second brother. Agent Horvath explains
that another wannabe boss in the area needs to be caught on tape with
incriminating evidence so that they can put him away. Joey and Tommy's
brother Vincent will be given an easy deal IF Tommy cooperates.
Tommy returns to 10th and Wolf, his true home, and rekindles his
friendship with Joey. But once in tight with him, Tommy's values toward
family and friends comes creeping up. That he cares deeply for Joey is
all too evident; he may even care more for Joey than he does his own
brother, something that is touched on in the film.
In the end, Tommy has to make a tough decision that is supposed to save
his brother, but put Joey in harms way. Not willing to let Joey go
through the danger alone, Tommy accompanies him into an explosive
situation, only to learn that his brother Vincent's mortal coil may have
been shed already.
Although fairly predictable, the story has some wonderful acting
moments. Giovanni Ribisi was flawless as the cocky start-up Joey. Every
scene he was in felt electrified. There's one in particular that stands
out. It is where he and Tommy stand near a fence toward the end of the
film and Joey speaks of trust and those who wear wires for "the good
guys." It is a very touching and dangerous moment, because the audience
doesn't know if Joey is going to kill Tommy or if his cold heart
actually has a place for Tommy in it.
That there aren't any "big bosses" around adds a tension to the flick
that is often lacking in other more gratuitously violent mafioso movies.
Joey and another small time crook are trying to become godfathers of
their own in the small community, and it is their battles with the past,
as much as with each other, that makes this film stand out above its
predecessors.
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Image from 10th & Wolf
DVD cost: $7.75
Purchase:
Tower.com
Film Review Stew
Favorite? No.
Stew Poo-Poo? No.
Newsworthy:
Pennsylvania lured the
production with the following incentives to keep the budget fiscally
responsible: a twenty percent transferable tax credit, no state sales
tax, and free use of state-owned property.
Movie Quote: "The
day after my 12th birthday I learned that my father killed people for a
living."
Other Actors/Actresses
from 10th & Wolf
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