Movie Review: The Drop (2014)

The trailers for The Drop suggest this movie is about a couple thugs robbing a mob-connected bar and how the shit then hits the fan.  You'd be forgiven for thinking this was a clone of the 2012 film, Killing Them Softly, but you'd also be very, very wrong.  The Drop is both more complex and more straight-forward, but also quite a bit more subtle.

There are actually several intertwined story-lines, all revolving around Bob, who tends bar at his cousin Marv's place.  Aside from the bar heist, the biggest storyline involves Bob finding a dog that's been beaten and left for dead in a local woman's dumpster.  Bob and the woman build a relationship as he learns to take care of the puppy.

The other story lines aren't immediately obvious, but rather unveil themselves as the movie progresses.  This movie is masterful at adding plot-points casually, making them look like natural character development and bits of local flavor.  I really admire how this script was put together; it's tightly constructed, but comes off as really loose.  There are slow points in the film when you may mistakenly believe that nothing important is going on.

Bob is played by Tom Hardy, who is proving to be an actor's actor.  In his last three films (playing the title character in Locke and Bane in The Dark Knight Rises), he's been virtually unrecognizable from one part to the next.  I wouldn't be surprised if it starts with his voice-- each character he plays seems to talk in a very unique way; Hardy would've been a natural in the age of radio plays.  But his body language is amazingly distinct, too.  He fully inhabits his roles in a way that would give Daniel Day Lewis a run for his money.  The other actors on hand are in fine form, too.  It's notable that this was James Gandolfini's last film role (though apparently there was some television pilot he did after this).

This film works on several levels.  If you appreciate character driven plots, and if you appreciate well constructed scripts, you'll really appreciate this film.  Highly recommended.