11pm PST – Bugsy (1991) The famed gangster running the mobs in Los Angeles tries to turn Las Vegas into a vacation paradise. Cast: Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, Harvey Keitel, Ben Kingsley Dir: Barry Levinson C-136 mins, TV-MA
Warren Beatty and Annette Bening smolder like Bogie and Bacall in a superb film that only gets better with each passing year. “Bugsy” is one of those rare period pieces made over the last 20 years where the casting’s so perfect no one looks silly in a fedora. Real grown ups placed in a beautifully designed production that never breaks the spell of time and place.
Beatty is marvelous as the charming mobster with a terrifying hair-trigger temper, and Bening is just as memorable as his equal in both the good and the bad. The first time Beatty’s Bugsy blows his stack is an unforgettable Jekyll and Hyde moment, but the heart of the story, the stormy love affair and visionary but doomed (at least for Bugsy) quest to transform Las Vegas makes for one of the last truly great biopics to come out of Hollywood.
The supporting cast shines, but especially Elliott Gould in a small but pivotal role as a sad sack gangster who knows he can always rely on Bugsy for … whatever. You’ll see what I mean.
A truly great film. Plenty violent, but a modern classic well worth your time.
Comment count on this article reflects comments made on Breitbart.com and Facebook. Visit Breitbart's Facebook Page.