Glass Chin

This is a pretty understated movie that I really loved, so I feel like I need to be careful with my exuberance in this review. I can imagine some folks would find it slow or underwhelming but I was rapt the whole time. At one point I realized I had literally sat up and was on the edge of the seat of my couch during a scene that was just two men sitting at a kitchen table talking. But the intensity of the dialogue combined with a masterfully slow push of the camera had me intent. I have always liked Corey Stoll so I was keen to see him in a leading role, and he was great, as expected. I've been becoming a fan of Marin Ireland as well, and she was also really good here. But my god, this is some of the best work I've seen Billy Crudup do, which I believe is saying a lot. He plays a gangster who is so slick, so polished, cunning, alluring, intense, and dangerous that he just ensnares the viewer as easily as he does Stoll's character Bud "The Saint" Gordon, drawing us in. Lastly, Yul Vazquez has been acting forever (I remember recognizing him when he did one scene on a Sopranos episode many years ago) and I never learned his name, I just knew his face. Well, I learned his name after this! He damn near stole the show. Outstanding work, but he, like everyone else in the film, was given great dialogue. Because the real star of the show here is writer/director Noah Buschel, bringing a story of choices and consequences that is shot beautifully and (to be bombastic) bravely. He is unafraid to just let the camera run, relying on pushes in instead of cuts, sometimes allowing the camera to just stay on an actor when they're no longer speaking, allowing silence and space, giving the story room to breathe. Lastly, a big shoutout to cinematographer Ryan Samul, who has done great work with films like Haunt and Cold In July and again, with Glass Chin. I spent the entire 90 minutes of the film admiring his marvelous work and was unsurprised when I looked him up to see that I had admired his work before. I'm gonna think about this movie for a while and definitely watch it again to make sure that my feelings of being blown away right now are justified but I gotta tell you, this was a hell of a first watch. It's streaming in a ton of places, check it out.

7 of 10. As much as the tedious and overused music Rocky music gets used, having a serious critique of it and the use of music in training was definitely an unexpected bonus. While it creates a story about the underside of boxing and gambling, it does so by making it sexy, amusing, and dangerous.

After Foxcatcher (2014), I was hoping more films like this would turn up. Going beyond the simplistic and deceptive underdog sports/fighter hero stories is very much needed even if it lacks the guaranteed easy box office cash. It lacks the "based on a true story" element, but definitely feels as if you're observing a composite sketch of something people have actually seen.

The result is something along the lines of The Fighter (2010), with smart casting making up for lesser acting talent and an understanding for their setting and its visual/audio qualities making up for less production money.

Glass Chin tells the story of a failed boxer as he gets tied up in a blackmail scheme with an underworld figure. In what could be the anti-Rocky film, Glass Chin benefits from a fantastic cast and brilliant cinematography but fails to deliver anything remotely surprising or invigorating to the genre. Starring Corey Stoll and Billy Crudup, the film's performances alone are worth the watch. Stoll plays Bud "The Saint" Greene, a disgraced but talented fighter from New Jersey and plays the role brilliantly. The film is designed to showcase the talented actor's ability to complete inhabit a character without any hesitation or reluctance. Much to the credit of director Noah Buschel, the design and style of this film allows his actors to really expand their range and create dynamically layered characters. JJ is played by Billy Crudup with some heavy handed relishing of the gangster character clichés that sometimes plays to the film's advantage and other times feels like Crudup is trying to deliver the next great line of dialog in American cinema and it doesn't pay off. Despite this, Crudup delivers a very good supporting performance. Kelly Lynch gives a good but routine performance as a femme fatale of sorts that we've seen countless times in virtually every noir film. Elizabeth Rodriguez delivers a tremendous performance in a role that is typically underused and paper thin. Writer-director Noah Buschel has crafted a strong noir film that resembles 1930s thriller cinema with each shot bursting with a subtle beauty. Glass Chin is definitely worth a watch.

Greetings again from the darkness. "Glory Days, well they'll pass you by" is a familiar line sung by Bruce Springsteen, and writer/director Noah Buschel brings that New Jersey sentiment to his latest film. We follow the travails of a former boxer struggling with the faded spotlight and his perceived lack of respect, while also seemingly oblivious to the maintenance his personal relationship requires.

Corey Stall (familiar to "House of Cards" fans) plays Bud "The Saint" Gordon, a retired boxer whose self-named local neighborhood hangout recently closed its doors. Bud is trying to figure out how to reclaim the good life afforded by his boxing winnings, and is opposed to his girlfriend Ellen (Marin Ireland) taking a waitress job to help out. He agrees to train a young up-and-coming boxer prepare for a fight, while also agreeing to work with a shady shyster named J.J. (Billy Crudup). Bud and J.J. have a history, and it's soon pretty clear that J.J. is some type of offbeat (he owns a snow leopard) kingpin or mobster, who finds a financial and psychological edge in all dealings.

Yul Vazquez plays J.J.'s lead henchman and has the "flashiest" (his character name is Flash) role in the film, although Crudup's character could have been even more fun if allotted more screen time. Also making brief appearances are Kelly Lynch, Katherine Waterston, and David Johansen. Of course, Mr. Johansen is a former member of The New York Dolls, and their song "Trash" plays a key role in one of Bud's earliest scenes working with Flash.

There is an unmistakable class theme – the have's vs the have-nots. The two sides are clear in Manhattan vs. New Jersey, and J.J. vs. Bud. The most interesting part of the story is with Bud's attempt to figure out the harsh ways of life, even as we viewers recognize he requires no shades for his future. Although both themes are pretty familiar in the movie world, Mr. Buschel opts to only scratch the surface on both the faded hero and the mob world. Instead, it's more of a dialogue-driven drama that questions where the line in the morality sand is drawn.

Great cast, but did I miss something?. It was strange.