"Gangster Squad," Fall 2012 (Warner Brothers):
Following in the footsteps of "L.A. Confidential" and "The Untouchables," the first trailer for "Gangster Squad" promises an all-out gangster flick, complete with plenty of shootouts and an A-list cast led by Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling and Josh Brolin.
Penn plays Mickey Cohen, a real life gangster who controlled the underworld of Los Angeles in 1949. With the politicians and law enforcers in his pocket, Cohen is just about king of L.A., until an underground police force starts striking back.
Even with a juicy story to tell and some acting Oscar bait, "Gangster Squad" also has some very familiar elements, and we'll have to see if it will be any more than a retread of gangster parables with new faces.
Directed by Ruben Fleischer ("Zombieland"), "Gangster Squad" adheres to the rule that all trailers for gangster movies have at least one song by Jay-Z, which has pretty much become the custom since "American Gangster" hit theaters in back in 2007.
Even with similar plot points as many other gangster flicks, though, the story of Cohen hasn't been fully told on the big screen and there is plenty of potential if done well.
The trailer for "Gangster Squad" can be viewed at the movie's official site.
Box office potential:
Assuming an R-rating, "Gangster Squad" won't have the luxury of picking up mainstream action audiences, which is often difficult to overcome for similar releases.
Even Johnny Depp's turn as bank robber John Dillinger in "Public Enemies" wasn't enough to really sway audiences, and "Public Enemies" ended up with so-so box office figures.
Gosling, Penn and Brolin are all popular, well-respected actors but are far from box office guarantees; despite acclaim, neither Gosling nor Penn has ever starred in a release that has made $100 million in the U.S.
"Gangster Squad" also comes on the heels of "Lawless," a crime-thriller starring Tom Hardy and Shia LaBeouf that had a much more convincing first trailer.
Still, the adult male demographic will come out for gritty gangster flicks, if only to say that it wasn't as good as "Scarface."
As long as it gets some critical respect, "Gangster Squad" should at least get off the ground when it finally hits theaters this fall, though it will probably need some awards season buzz to turn into a legitimate hit.
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