Live by Night, Ben Affleck's fourth film as a director, is an involving, muscular, and stylish Prohibition-era crime drama. He not only directs and writes, but also stars as Joe, the troubled son of a respected Boston policeman (Brendan Gleeson). Joe turns to crime upon returning from the nightmarish First World War, graduating from low-level thief to head of the Italian mafia's alcohol operation on Florida's Gulf Coast. Critics have largely savaged this film, and I understand their perspective to an extent. There is a degree of superficiality to it compared to the absolute best films of this genre depicting this historical period, and its initial through line—Joe's rivalry with a particularly virulent Irish mobster (Robert Glenister) after they feud over a gun moll (Sienna Miller)—becomes rather lost amid a series of subplots, including a conflict with the Ku Klux Klan and the tragic arc of a naive small-town girl (Elle Fanning) who travels west only to discover heroin and be forced into prostitution. The central question of whether Joe can be both a gangster and a decent man is ultimately rather trite. Despite recognition of these flaws, however, I found Live by Night to be grandly entertaining. The cinematography by Robert Richardson is as gorgeous as one would expect from Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino's favored director of photography, particularly once the action shifts to the crowded Cuban nightclubs and sunset-lit vistas of Florida. Affleck delivers a steady and charismatic performance in the lead role, and he is encircled by a gallery of fine talents, with Fanning delivering a particularly hypnotic and poignant turn. And the film is highly engaging in the moment; it may not build to a grand, Oscar-winning statement on crime, faith, family, and race in 1920s America, but the car-chase and gunfight set pieces are exhilarating; the twists of allegiance and power plays are captivating; and the entire enterprise registers as a handsomely mounted and seductive slice of big-budget pulp fiction.

B+

To indulge in a bit of apologist conspiracy theorizing, I cannot help but feel awful, awful timing felled this one to a degree. The perceived presumptuous audacity of the Christmas Day limited release combined with the perception of Affleck pivoting in 2016 from new Sydney Pollack (The Town, Argo) to Zack Snyder's Batman.

Indeed. I'm sure this would have been better received(BO wise and with audiences/critics) if it was positioned as a summer film.

I'm still keen on seeing this after that review. Thanks.

I liked parts of the film, but I couldn't help feeling like there was something significant missing. I didn't really feel anything for the ladies, and I hated the narration. Also, I can't remember a single vehicle in the movie having a spec of dirt on it. That really bothered me.

5/10

This was pretty disappointing and I'm one of the few that actually really enjoyed The Accountant. The direction is top notch and Ben Affleck is fine as the lead if not a bit stiff, but after the first thirty minutes this film starts to meander too damn much. It's a shame too because there's some interesting stuff that happens in the second half of this film, but too many subplots start to take over and the movie just ends up being one big mess. Even the standout supporting cast members like Chris Cooper and Elle Fanning who give really solid performances felt like unnecessary add-ons just to pad the running time.

I also didn't care for Saldana or Miller as the love interests here, but I will say that Affleck definitely had more chemistry with Miller eventhough I hated her forced Irish accent. The gangster scenes and Chris Messina were easily the highlights of this movie for me. There also needed to be way more Brendan Gleeson.

Live by Night

You know at the end of gangster films like Goodfellas where everyone dies? Well, this whole film felt like one of those montages. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Live By Night, but while I enjoyed the violence and the essence of the story, I couldn't shake the feeling that the film loses itself. Perhaps Ben Affleck wasn't the right person to write the screenplay. Something was a miss. This should have been a gangster masterpiece.

B

Solid movie but nothing memorable. Affleck does better this time in front of camera than behind which is surprising because the other movies have this reversed.

5/10.

I also feel that there's subject fatigue at play here. It seems like there's no shortage of Irish-Italian mobster films, and having watched Kill the Irishman recently, it felt like covering old ground. And Affleck sleepwalks through the film.