The Funeral (1996)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

Abel Ferrara

Writer (WGA):

Nicholas St. John (written by)

Release Date:

1 November 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

One family, one murder, too many lies.

Plot:

New York City, the 1930s. A powerful crime family is caught in a lethal crossfire between union organizers and brutal corporate bosses...

Plot Keywords:

Violence | 1930s | Murder | Rape | Marital Abuse

Awards:

2 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Christopher Walken	...	Ray Tempio
Chris Penn	...	Chez Tempio
Annabella Sciorra	...	Jean
Isabella Rossellini	...	Clara Tempio
Vincent Gallo	...	Johnny
Benicio Del Toro	...	Gaspare
Gretchen Mol	...	Helen
John Ventimiglia	...	Sali
Paul Hipp	...	Ghouly
Victor Argo	...	Julius
Gian DiDonna	...	Ray Sr. (as Gian Di Donna)
Dmitri Prachenko	...	Sentieri (as Dmitry Prachenko)
Paul Perri	...	Young Ray
Gregory Perrelli	...	Young Chez
Joey Hannon	...	Middle Chez

MPAA:

Rated R for strong crude sex scenes, strong violence and language.

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:MA | Canada:18A (Ontario) | Iceland:16 | Netherlands:16 | South Korea:18 | Finland:K-16 (video premiere) | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:III | Portugal:M/16 | Spain:18 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

C&P Productions

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Johnny is dead in his coffin, but he flinches when someone brushes his eyebrows.

Quotes:

Jean: They're criminals, and there's absolutely nothing romantic about it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Nel cuore della notte (2002)

Soundtrack:

Goulhie's Dance

Interesting, if Uneven Gangster Drama

When it comes to cult film-maker Abel Ferrara, people seem to either love his work or hate it. I think some of his films are great but some are just rubbish. Fortunately "The Funeral" is far from being rubbish, but then it's not great either.

Set in New York in the 1930s, the film centres on an organised crime family, headed by brothers Ray (Christopher Walken) and Chezz (Chris Penn) who are set to bury their younger brother Johnny (Vincent Gallo). As Johnny's wake progresses the two remaining brothers reflect on his life and try to track down his killer.

The film is pretty well made, and benefits from strong performances all round. It's main defect is that the film tends to lose focus and go off at tangents (scenes where Johnny attends a Communist rally were pretty pointless). Also, as in many Ferrara films, there is a very blatant religious subtext which sometimes gets in the way of the drama. Also, be warned that there is a lot of pretty brutal violence in this film.

If you like gangster films (and obviously if you're a Ferrara fan) give this a go. It's worth trying anyway just for the quality of the performances.