Give 'em Hell, Malone

The film is a great parody of the noir genre. It has stylish characters, the detached commentary of the protagonist who is always above it all, very corrupt villains, and a sexy lady who teases the protagonist and plays her own game with him. The wild shootout at the beginning sets a somewhat frantic pace, more fitting for a comic book classic, but fortunately, the atmosphere slows down a bit, so we tune in to the wave of casual loners. The script indeed falters a bit in the logic of the narrative, but that can always be forgiven due to the aforementioned parodic intent. To be honest, many lesser films in the genre are in the same boat. Give 'Em Hell Malone is a stylish homage to trash films, and I cannot give it less than 4 stars solely because of Matchstick with his disgustingly scarred face and pitch-black soul. Overall impression: 75%. (26/01/2011)

That Thomas Jane is made for these roles has been clear since his days playing the Soapmaker. The matte black 1952 Buick Straight 8 and the Mateba Model 6 Unica are wonderful props in this neo-noir story, just like the curves of the fatal femme Pataky. So why doesn’t it work? The culprit is the not-so-bright monologues and dialogues (normally the showcase of the genre) and the lackluster characters. Gregory Harrison as the villain in front of a flickering fireplace is hard to bear, the psychopathic flame Doug Hutchison and "Lollipop 69" drown in embarrassing caricatures, and Rhames plays Mr. Marcellus but is barely present. It has a visual style, and it doesn’t shy away from violence, but it would probably work best as a sitcom where the indestructible tough guy suffers under the watch of his eternally drunk, demented mother from a retirement home. (13/10/2020)

Blood, badass dudes, wisecracks, and a beautiful woman. After a great start, it fluctuates a little, but some nonsense always comes along that makes you laugh. A drunk mom, a burned-out Doug Hutchison. On top of that, Jane is better in this badass role than most. A really enjoyable B-movie. - Do you think it’s because of me? - It’s more likely your dumb face. (24/01/2010)