By Jan Hamilton
Small Crimes, not to be confused with Small Town Crime, which also played at this year’s SXSW, is an enjoyable film with some great performances. We follow Joe Denton (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) a crooked cop just out of jail who viciously attacked and disfigured a district attorney while he (Joe) was in a drug soaked haze. Naturally he was fired from the police force. Joe seems to want to get his life back on track. he especially wants to get in touch with his kids. Even with the best intentions, Joe is soon back to drugs and drinking. He learns from his old police captain (Gary Cole) that the mob boss they both worked for is dying and may confess to all of everyone’s criminal acts from the past. It seems quite of few of the police were involved with the mob. Joe is given the job of eliminating this threat, there is incredible pressure on him because of all the lives this possible confession may ruin. He starts dating a nice woman (Molly Parker) who is a care giver to the ailing mob boss, and involves her in the murder plot. Meanwhile, with nowhere else to go and no money, he is living with his parents (Jacki Weaver and Robert Forster) who are beyond fed up with years of bad behavior. The plot soon comes to a boil, and we have the inevitable bloody conclusion.
The Bottom Line: Our anti-hero is charming but extremely unlikable, we wonder how much damage he will do to the people we do care about, and watch avidly for that reason.
Director: Evan Katz
Executive Producer: Jon Shiffman, Evan Katz, Julia Godzinskaya,
Michael Sackler, Sophie Vickers, Joel Thibout, David Atlan-Jackson,
Jean-Baptiste Babin, Emilie Georges, Naima Abed, Nicholas Kaiser
Producer: David Lancaster, Stephanie Wilcox
Screenwriter: Evan Katz, Macon Blair
Cinematographer: Andrew Wheeler
Editor: Josh Ethier
Production Designer: Sylvain Lemaitre
Sound Designer: Craig Mann
Music: Will Blair, Brooke Blair
Principal Cast: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Jacki Weaver, Robert Forster,
Gary Cole, Molly Parker, Macon Blair, Pat Healy
Additional Credits: Music Supervisor: Chris Douridas,
Costumes Designed By: Patricia McNeil,
Makeup Department Head: Joan-Patricia Parris,
Hair Department Head: Daniel Jacobs,
Casting by: Mark Bennett