The Alto Knights, starring Robert De Niro, Debra Messing, Kathrine Narducci and Cosmo Jarvis, is now showing in cinemas nationwide.
Whether you’re a cinephile or not, most people can agree that Robert De Niro is one of the best actors working today. Anyone whose career contains titles like The Godfather: Part II, Taxi Driver and Raging Bull is bound to leave an impression. In his later years, De Niro is still mesmerising audiences with stellar performances from Silver Linings Playbook to Killers of the Flower Moon, and he is as captivating as ever in The Alto Knights – it’s just a pity that the film itself is quite the convoluted disarray.
Serving as director Barry Levinson’s first feature film in a decade, The Alto Knights is a biographical crime drama about 50s mob bosses Vito Genovese and Frank Costello. In an interesting twist, De Niro plays both mob bosses in a dual role; his different attire, mannerisms and accents distinguishing each character. Costello and Genovese are the top mob bosses of the mafia, ruling their crime families with an iron fist – Costello is even dubbed the “Prime Minister of the Underworld”. They continue their practice in the colosseum of New York City well into the 50s, where Costello begins to consider retirement.
Conflict arises when Genovese, seeing an opportunity, arranges an assassination attempt on Costello. Costello survives through sheer luck, but he knows that neither he nor his family will be safe as long as he is in Genovese’s crosshairs. As such, he begins to manoeuvre his resources and efforts into protecting himself and his family, all while Genovese uses his to take out the competition. The resulting power struggle escalates throughout the film, spilling out into the open.
Gritty pictures, particularly gangster dramas like this one, are a natural fit for De Niro. With an intimidating figure, even in his 80s, and a knack for controlled responses, De Niro is often the type of actor who one thinks of when you imagine actors pulling off mob boss looks. In giving him two roles to work with, The Alto Knights encapsulates a considerable amount of De Niro’s range as he portrays two powerful men who will do anything to see the other in the ground, their similar positions but differing values forming the drama of the conflict. This opens the door to compelling themes – namely, the allure of power and the ways it can corrupt one into something unrecognisable. On paper, there’s a lot of meaty material on display.
Sadly, despite De Niro’s efforts, the film’s potential is buried by an overstuffed script and scattershot filmmaking. Following Costello’s assassination attempt, the story begins to feel repetitive as seemingly endless numbers of scenes of people sitting in luxurious homes or gathering in public spaces to conspire start to bleed into each other. Key information is exchanged, and strategising is abundant, but because it relies on dialogue over action, the two-hour runtime begins to drag and threaten to induce sleep over enticement. Even when compelling moments occur, such as a moment in court where Costello is faced with one of Genovese’s enforcers, Vincent (Cosmo Jarvis), so much of the context and preceding drama has gotten lost in the whirlwind of dialogue, characters, and plot points that it’s hard to keep track of what’s happening.
That this overflow of components is presented in a rather mercurial fashion only adds to the film’s sense of weariness. The cinematography is disappointingly flat, despite the vivaciousness of the premise, with the colour palette appearing muted and the framing, for the most part, mundane, the style of the period being captured mostly through the costumes, props, and cars. What’s especially bizarre about this choice to underplay the style is that, at certain moments, the editing suddenly becomes extremely choppy, obscuring much of the detail. This becomes apparent during Costello’s assassination attempt as the camera cuts to the next angle so often, sometimes in what feels like milliseconds, that it looks like cinematic whiplash. It just makes an already convoluted story even harder to follow, doing the overt sense of messiness no favours.
A generally strong cast keeps the ship bobbing along, but more at a slow limp than a smooth sail. De Niro’s dual performance grips through the small but significant details that make Costello and Genovese feel like their own unique forces. At times, you forget that you’re watching the same actor in two roles, which is a remarkable feat in itself. Other highlights include Debra Messing and Kathrine Narducci as Costello and Genovese’s wives, respectively, and then there is Cosmo Jarvis as Vincent. Jarvis has previously demonstrated his knack for gleaning vulnerability from traditionally uber-masculine roles – see his brilliant work in the underrated Calm With Horses. Jarvis brings that same ability to the role of Vincent, portraying him as a man who seems more boyish than adult, thrust into a world where he must bear the brunt of more powerful men’s feuding. The cast’s efforts are admirable and deserve better than the slapdash craft surrounding them.
All in all, The Alto Knights fails to generate much investment beyond De Niro’s intriguing dual efforts. There are hints of substance at times, and the real-life story of Costello and Genovese is a fascinating, albeit dark, one. Sadly, Levinson’s haphazard direction to the tune of a frustratingly jam-packed script fails to bring the intrigue of their story to life. It’s by no means awful, but it’s, unfortunately, one of those films that we critics will likely forget we even saw as the year ends.
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