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The Yards
... ambiguity that makes the film interesting. Most crime movies have a simplistic good vs. evil moral structure. When "The Godfather" comes along, with its shades of morality within a shifting situation, it exposes most mob pictures as fairy tales. "The Yards" resembles "The Godfather" in the way it goes inside the structure of corruption, and shows how judges and elected officials work at arms' length with people they know are breaking the law. But it also resembles "Mean Streets," the film about two childhood friends who get in over their heads.
—Roger Ebert
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2 Days in the Valley
Overlooked in theaters but gaining a modest cult following in video release, writer-director John Herzfeld's underrated 2 Days in the Valley has a lot going for it, not the least being a variety of interesting characters played by a superb ensemble cast. The complex plot centers on a mild-mannered hit man (Danny Aiello) who is hired by an icy killer (James Spader) to assist him on his latest job. Eric Stoltz and Jeff Daniels play the vice cops who stumble on the murder scene. Their investigation leads to a colorful array of San Fernando Valley denizens, including a has-been director (played by director Paul Mazursky) and a snobbish art dealer (Greg Cruttwell) whose lives come together in unexpected and interesting ways. Emphasizing characters that consistently hold our attention with humor and poignant desire, this clever thriller fits nicely into the eccentric category of "Only in California."
—Jeff Shannon
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Classic Hollywood
I first saw Charlize Theron in a movie called 2 Days in the Valley which was one of countless films made in the mid-nineties riffing Tarantino. As far as they went, 2 Days wasn't too bad. James Spader etc. Theron was very watchable in an otherwise awkward (but underrated) Astronaut's Wife, the perfect modern Rosemary in The Devil's Advocate, and impossibly warm in The Yards and The Cider House Rules. ¶ She's unquestionably beautiful and I enjoyed illustrating her immensely. |
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