Cheap State of Grace (DVD) (Sean Penn, Ed Harris, Gary Oldman) (Phil Joanou) Price

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Customer Reviews of State of Grace

An Irish "Novel" of friendship and betrayel
I watched this movie about ten times and think it's one of the most underrated movies around. Coming along with a great cast like Sean Penn, Gary Oldman, Ed Harris and Robin Penn Wright, this movie caught me again and again from the first second to the last.
Set in Hell's Kitchen New York the movie let's you breathe in the Irish athmosphere and tells a bloodthirsty story of friendship & betrayel. Sean Penn plays Terry Noonan, an undercover policeman who was infiltrated in an Irish gang lead by the Flannery brothers ( fantastic play by Gary Oldman and Ed Harris ). The film reflects very good Noonan's split emotions beeing a cop investigating against his former friends and the growing love to the sister of the Flannery brothers ( above average play of Robin Penn Wright ).
The film combines a good story, great actors, silent and short eruptions of violence and maybe one of the most impressive shoot out final ever ! Fantastic camera work!
If you like films like "Good Fellas" and "Reservoir Dogs" you should not miss this one. If you hide yourself behind a pillow when violence comes into play, leave it.

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A Gritty, Underrated Film. A Gary Oldman masterpiece!
This film is definitely worth seeing, and has grown on me with repeated viewings. It is well directed and well cast, and it manages at times to be unpredicatable even though it has a somewhat formulaic, standard-issue plot. Sean Penn is good (as always) and manages to portray his character's angst and moral dilemma well, Ed Harris is intense, frightening and good, Robin Wright is very good (as always).....but, Gary Oldman is simply brilliant. He delivers a volatile, powerful, and credible performance. His signature intensity is definitely present and well suited for this role, and he also infuses the role with subtle nuance and complexity and poignancy. Oldman breathes incredible life into his character, which allows this movie to (almost) transcend its gangster foundation. As Oldman is capable of doing, he really disappears into this role, blending into the fabric of the character, allowing me to forget (temporarily) that I'm watching an actor portraying a role. This film is worth watching stricly for the acting....especially Oldman's brilliant turn.

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Interesting
State of Grace is a good movie with great actors. The film follows a conventional storyline but is "buoyed up" by the novelty of the subject, the Irish Mob. About half way through the movie, the various characters start to interact in interesting ways, and the film acquires a momentum that it keeps until the end.

Unfortunately, none of the characters seems sufficiently developed to draw the viewer completely into the turmoil that is unfolding on the screen. Terry is the most complex character portrayed, but ultimately, at the end of the movie, I didn't really care what happened to Terry or his girlfriend, Kathleen. For me, becoming involved in a character's experience on screen is what separates adequate films from great films.

I give State of Grave three and a half stars. State of Grace is no Goodfellas, but watch it for compelling performances by Sean Penn and Gary Oldman, for the unique subject matter and for some fun action sequences. However, if you want to be inspired, or devastated, or watch a movie that conveys broader themes than what is happening physically on screen, I would recommend watching something else. This movie is a snapshot into a world, nothing more, nothing less. It left me with a vague feeling of emptiness and I won't be adding State of Grace to my DVD library anytime soon.