‘O Danny Boy’

Miller’s Crossing

When I was turning 21 I got the chance to get a really big present. I couldn’t really figure out what I wanted until I came across a laserdisc player. Now commentaries, jumping to scenes, high quality visuals may seem pretty normal in a post-DVD world but at the time this just sounded incredible. So I had the player on the way and needed to pick out some films to buy. I’d seen bits about Miller’s Crossing in the past and I think this was around the time of Fargo – so the Coen’s were almost as hot as they are today. It just seemed like a perfect choice.

First time watching it I was absolutely blown away, I still think it stands up as one of my favorite gangster flicks of all time. When I started putting together the idea of a Moviedrome inspired ‘Great Scenes’ selection for Youtube there wasn’t any doubt in my mind which scene to use first. Albert Finney fucking up a bunch of no-good gangsters with a Thompson gun with an unending ammunition supply.

It’s a great moment made all the better for the music playing over the top. If you’ve never seen it then you’re in for one hell of treat and I’m still impressed from the Youtube comments that this is being used in film classes. Much as I love Pandora’s Box I know which movie I’d rather sit through…

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Z-wd4nH3-CA