Butch "Bullet" Stein, a Jewish junkie from the mean streets of Brooklyn, is paroled after eight years in prison. Butch rips off a runner for local drug dealer, Tank, and is soon right back into his old habit of snorting coke and shooting up heroin with his best friend Lester. Enraged by Butch's affront and already determined to get revenge on him for a past wrong, Tank sets about getting even with his old enemy by hiring a hulking brute, Gates, to beat Butch. When the confrontation occurs, however, Gates breaks his hand on the battle-hardened Butch. Besides Lester, the only people in Butch's corner are his two brothers, the mentally-unhinged Vietnam War veteran Louis and aspiring artist Ruby, neither of whom can be counted on to help him in the inevitable showdown. One of the best Rourke's performances! He plays Butch Stein, the New York junkie, who's just got out of prison after a few years. Butch arrives in New york (brooklyn), meets his old pals and starts his criminal life again. In this film you'll find out how it is to live in the worst part of the Big Apple. Crime, drugs, hoo***s, gang wars, numerous curses - that's the world of people who once were normal, but know they're nothing more than drug dealers, idling all the time, spitting on pavements, looking for easy money, ashaming their families… This is what the film is about. Rourke really did great job - his acting skills are fantastically used in this film. Although he's a bad guy, we are on his side from the beginning to the end and we really regret what he's turned into. Apart from M.R., there's also Ted Levine and deceased rap star, Tupac. They also did a great performance - T.L. as a crazy brother of Butch, and Tupac as an one-eyed gangsta. There are many moving moments in this film, eg. the scene when Butch decides to steal jewellery from his parents, or when he is riding with his friends along the same street where Gene Hackman chased the drug dealers in "French Connection". The music in the background is really cool and moody…<br/><br/>I recommend this film. It's rather disgusting one, but still it's worth watching. There are no great heroes, outstanding cops or other almost-perfect people we usually watch in these modern blockbusters. In my opinion this movie is underrated and that's a pity. It could be something like a warning or a message for all young people if they watched it. Unfortunately, they probably won't because 98% of the movie fans don't know this film!!! since i watched the wrestler i've been on a kick of renting mickey rourke movies and aside from the wrestler i'd say this is his best performance i've seen so far. he was just so good in this movie. he shows so much emotion and still pulls off the whole tuff guy bad ass thing. mickey rourke is effing cool man. <br/><br/>the guy who plays bullet's older brother also really stands out to me. he definitely had crazy, paranoid war vet down. <br/><br/>and bullet's best friend was funny as hell. what a joke.<br/><br/>i heard mixed reviews about this movie so i decided to go in without expecting much and i was pleasantly surprised. i really enjoyed it. <br/><br/>it's not a feel good movie. it has lots of funny bits (for those of us with a sick sense of humor) but at the same time it is quite serious and i think people can learn from it. it may sound cool to be hard and tuff but watch this movie. i think the main intention of the movie was to show kids what street life can do to people (which of course had been done before in other films but its still good).<br/><br/>anyway… they say that this one of mickey rourke's few good moments in that point of his acting career and i would definitely encourage people to check it out.
Shodar replied
344 weeks ago