Capone

Roughly 90 minutes into Capone, following various public and private embarrassments stemming from his deteriorating mental and physical states, 47-year-old Al Capone (Tom Hardy) sits for an interview with two FBI agents at his Florida estate — and promptly shits himself, complete with comically wet, juvenile flatulence sound effects.

The overlong scene is the perfect summation of writer/director Josh Trank’s patience-testing biopic, a film so confoundedly boring and mismanaged that it makes one wonder if the notorious “studio interference” theatrical cut of Fantastic Four (2015) was Trank's vision after all.

That anyone greenlit this project is just as baffling. Packaged with the enduring sheen of gangster flicks, the last days of Al Capone might sound good in an elevator pitch, but once the specifics of what such an undertaking would entail is revealed, the prospects dim significantly.

Trank’s endurance test of a script sloppily explores a notorious murderer haunted by his demons and attempting to make amends in a compromised state, placing the entirety of Capone’s hopes on Hardy, who, despite his immense talents, is borderline unwatchable under the filmmaker’s guidance. 

Audiences shouldn't have to witness an actor of Hardy’s caliber shuffle around, grunt, and debase himself over and over again, yet beyond the occasional intriguing flashback and a last gasp exciting stretch that winds up having a lousy explanation, he’s in full torpid ex-boxer mode. (Now I understand how many viewers feel about his Bane and Venom.)

Now, had Trank focused on Capone’s wife Mae (Linda Cardellini) and her apparent ability to call up dead people on the telephone, the film might have a chance, but as is, it’s a brutal viewing experience and one that could sink the filmmaker’s career for good.

Grade: D. Rated R. Now available to rent via Amazon Video and iTunes

(Photo: Vertical Entertainment)