By Celeste Paulson
Ranger Reporter
Be discreet, don’t kill anyone and try to fit in. The Manzoni family’s relocation to Normandy is one of many in the past six years. This time federal agents hope to keep the family’s location a secret from revenge-seeking mobsters.
Director Luc Besson’s latest movie, The Family, leaves audiences satisfied but not enthralled.
Violence and death appear in the opening scenes and can be found throughout the entire plot. The movie’s main focus is on father Giovanni’s (Robert De Niro) former career as a gangster in Brooklyn, where he betrayed one of the head mobsters, Don Luchese (Stan Carp). The Manzonis are put into the witness protection program to hide from Luchese. Recognizable actors such as Michelle Pfeiffer, who plays Maggie, and Dianna Agron, who is cast as Belle, play leading roles.
Mainly focusing on the mobster lifestyle, the overall nature of the movie is violent. The vicious nature of the family becomes distasteful, with almost every scene containing at least one member of the family beating, torturing or killing someone.
The violence becomes repetitive and overdone by the final scene.
Scene transitions lead into each new setting nicely as each scene begins with a sound or action from the previous scene. The style of the movie is artistic and clearly defines the setting and plot with various camera angles and transitions.
Although each scene has its own climactic moment, the actual climax of the movie seems to take a long time. By the time the movie arrives at its most action-packed scene, the audience already has witnessed gunshots, torture and death, making the final battle less impressive.
Although the violence and death scenes are repetitive, the movie also contains a refreshing amount of family morals. The character development is well done, making the family seem realistic.
Love, lust and criminal acts do not separate the family, and in the closing scenes, the characters fight for one another, making them appear more real.
Avoiding angry mobsters, focusing on family and trying to get accustomed to Normandy, the Manzoni family is one to watch, but not more than a few times.
The action-packed movie has scene transitions that will hold the audience’s attention, but a lack of creative plot twists and the use of repetitive violent scenes will not make people remember the movie for long
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