Page 30 - bon-dia-aruba-20200514

a30 people & arts
Thursday 14 May 2020
Review: A grotesque, inglorious look at Capone’s last year

By LINDSEY BAHR Wars film. But perhaps his
AP Film Writer most infamous moment
Al Capone lived out his fi- was when he distanced
nal years on a grand estate himself from his expensive
in Palm Island, Florida, with "Fantastic Four" reboot a
his wife, Mae, by his side day before it opened (and
and grandchildren run- bombed) with a tweet im-
ning around the property. plying that studio interfer-
It sounds like a pretty nice ence ruined his once great
end for the notorious Chi- film.
cago gangster, until you Although we'll never get to
realize that he spent those see what he might have
post Alcatraz years suffer- done left to his own devic-
ing from declining health, es with "Fantastic Four," for
dementia and the long- better or worse "Capone" is
term effects of a syphilis in- fully a Josh Trank product.
fection from when he was He wrote, edited and di-
just a teenager that went rected. And although "Ca-
untreated. Also? He was pone" has interesting ele-
ments and a strong style, it
is also deeply flawed and a
bit of a slog to get through.
Hardy's go-for-broke per-
formance is certainly jaw-
dropping, but not exactly
This image released by Vertical Entertainment shows Linda Cardellini, left, and Tom Hardy in a effective in drawing you in
scene from "Capone." to care about his story or his
Associated Press regrets. There are threads
likely broke. Then he died "Fonse" (the name Al is not are laid out just as chaoti- that are introduced with lit-
of a heart attack on Janu- to be uttered on the prop- cally and unpleasantly in tle resolve: The possible $10
ary 25, 1947. He was only erty) totters around his well- "Capone" for audiences to million that he's hidden and
48. groomed and cliche Flo- make sense of. lost, the FBI agent (a com-
It's this chapter that gets ridian mansion in an open "Capone" is the work of pelling Jack Lowden) who
the focus in "Capone," a robe with a cigar (and, filmmaker Josh Trank, who, has to convince his own
hallucinatory and messy later, a carrot) hanging out you may recall, is the boss that Capone is worth
(in all respects) film star- of his mouth. When he's not blockbuster wunderkind continuing to investigate,
ring Tom Hardy as the once shouting at his wife (Linda who became a bit of a pa- and the out-of-wedlock
great crime boss who is Cardellini) or gardeners, he riah in under four years. His son who keeps calling and
now hardly recognizable to can often be found with a film "Chronicle" made him, appearing to him. The sup-
himself or his family and in a thousand-yard stare which at 27, a precious box of- porting cast is wasted (it's
state of rapid decline. With either means he's about fice superstar who earned not just Cardellini). Matt Dil-
ashen skin, blood-red eyes to go into a flashback se- comparisons to Spielberg lon pops up for a bit. And
and a voice that is so raspy quence or is soiling himself and Cameron. But his de- Kyle MacLachlan plays the
as to be almost unintelligi- — he does both quite fre- cline started before he physician who suggests the
ble, Hardy's Capone looks quently. His decay is car- could make good on the family give him a carrot in-
like a drawing of a comic toonish, as though all of his assumption that he was the stead of a cigar, since he
book gangster that's gone past sins are oozing out of next big thing. He was then won't notice anyway. It's
too far. his brain and body. They hired, and fired, from a Star also numbingly violent.q

Ex-lovers of Johnny Depp come to his defense in libel case

in his libel suit against Brit- restraining order. Depp
ish newspaper The Sun, has strenuously denied
dismissing claims that he the allegations.
was violent or abusive. In a hearing conducted
Actresses Vanessa Para- remotely, lawyers for Depp
dis and Winona Ryder argued that statements
offered supportive state- from Ryder and Paradis
ments for the "Pirates of should be included as evi-
the Caribbean'' star, who dence in the actor's case
is suing the tabloid paper's against the publisher.
publisher, News Group "We've been partners for
Newspapers, over an April 14 years and we raised our
2018 article which referred two children together,''
This combination photo shows French model-actress and
singer Vanessa Paradis, left, and actress Winona Ryder, two to the 56-year-old Depp Paradis said, court docu-
former romantic partners of actor Johnny Depp who have as a "wife -beater." ments show. "Through all
defended him as part of his libel suit against British newspaper The article contained alle- these years, I've known
The Sun. gations by Depp's ex-wife, Johnny to be a kind, at-
Associated Press Amber Heard, who filed tentive, generous, and
LONDON (AP) — Two for- actor Johnny Depp came for divorce after request- non-violent person and
mer romantic partners of to his defense Wednesday ing a domestic violence father." q