A drug dealer kidnaps a rival's 15-year-old brother, who develops
a brotherly friendship with the dealer's right-hand man as things go south. BIOPIC/CRIME/DRAMA
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Alpha Dog (2006)Written and Directed by Nick Cassavetes
Starring Emile Hirsch, Justin Timberlake, Anton Yelchin, Ben Foster, Shawn Hatosy, Olivia Wilde, Sharon Stone, David Thornton, Amanda Seyfried, Chris Marquette, Bruce Willis |
Alpha Dog is based on the real-life kidnapping and murder of Nicholas Markowitz in 2000 that was organized by small-time drug dealer Jesse James Hollywood, who was later caught and imprisoned. The names have all been changed for legal reasons, but the details are pretty on point. Emile Hirsch plays Johnny Truelove, the fictional version of the drug-dealing mastermind, and he's pretty goddamned contemptible. Justin Timberlake plays his go-to guy, Frankie Ballenbacher, in a fantastic performance that helped prove to audiences that he is a man of many talents. Then we've got the late Anton Yelchin as Zack Mazursky, the fictional version of the poor victim, who (according to the movie) believed he was in safe hands right up until the end.
Johnny Truelove starts a beef with a junkie burnout named Jake Mazursky (Foster), which escalates to the point where Johnny kidnaps Jake's younger brother Zack. This was the extent of his plan, because he then just has Zack hang around with his people until he can talk Jake into paying him a ransom. But Zack comes from overbearing parents, and he loves the gangster lifestyle. He loses his virginity at a party and gets drunk and high with the big boys. But Johnny can't negotiate with Jake, so he decides that Zack has to die in order to keep them all out of prison. This all happened, by the way. Don't forget that. The heartbreaking scene where Zack finally realizes what's going to happen and begs for his life is difficult to watch. Yelchin was such a powerhouse, and we all lost him too early. Alpha Dog is a brutal crime drama that tells the unflinching story of a small-time asshole who wanted to wear the big shoes and be a badass. So, he destroyed a family forever. The cast all does a great job, even Bruce Willis in his small but important role as Johnny's father and weed supplier. The real story is so insane that, for a time, Jesse James Hollywood was on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list. When they finally got him in 2005, writer/director Nick Cassavetes reshot the ending to include a brief scene of his arrest in Paraguay. Thank God, not just for the victims, but for the movie. |