The Drop

“The Drop” is a film with a tight cast of highly talented actors. Our main character, Bob Saginowski (Tom Hardy), a man whose world is fairly mundane, encounters a whimpering dog in a trash can. His interest in rescuing the dog provides a backdrop to the story. Bob works for Marv (James Gandolfini), a former bar owner turned mafia pawn.

This film has some detective flavor, a decent amount of drama and a subtlety of color with repeating masculine themes. Nearly everyone has dark hair, and much of the film takes place under shadow and at night. It is visually compelling and contains an old school, slower pace. The story has undoubtedly dark edges, and it grows darker in the minutes ahead.

For its better points, the story is intellectually thoughtful and contemplative—a compelling thriller. However, it is all but bereft of edifying content, and it is demented enough to be ‘adults only.’

“The Drop” contains just a few actual displays of violence, but there is much gruesome imagery, such as severed human body parts and connotations of greater violence throughout.

This film contains extreme cursing throughout (more than 70 f-words and profanity). It has little to no sexual content.

“The Drop” will get some acclaim for its well told story. It has value there. This is a fairly strong piece of media. If you ‘take it,’ I don’t recommend taking it lightly. A subtle message underlies the story. I find what it tells about life to be empty and even betraying.

Violence: Heavy to extreme / Profanity: Extreme / Sex/Nudity: Mild

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.

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