While history books often use the 1921 Sacco and Vanzetti case as an example of justice falling victim to the bigotry of the times, this HBO movie--based on a turn-of-the-century New Orleans trial--provides a far more sobering example. Vendetta opens with a montage of black-and-white photos of immigrants arriving in the U.S., accompanied by an audio track of anti-immigrant invective that sets the tone for the rest of the movie. Christopher Walken lends his always unsettling presence as the city's largest cotton exporter and mastermind of a plot to take over the docks from the Italian immigrants who run them. When police chief David Hennessy (Clancy Brown) refuses to go along with the plan, he's shot and killed, and a random group of Italian produce merchants are accused of the murder. The trial and its appalling aftermath are portrayed with a realistic vehemence that may make some viewers flinch. Director Nicholas Meyer has coaxed powerful performances from a cast of mostly unknown actors, most notable among these is Alessandro Colla, who makes his debut as 15-year-old Gaspare Marchesi and provides the film's few smiles. The pacing makes Vendetta hard to follow at first, but as the subplots begin to converge like cars speeding toward the same intersection, the film compels you to keep watching until the inevitable conclusion. --Larisa Lomacky Moore
2.
An angry mob of immigrant New Orleans dock workers are unleashed upon a popular lawman and his family at the command of businessmen and political cronies who seek control of the docks. Based on a true story of the largest lynching in American history.
3.
When the Old Country Meets the New World, The Streets Will Run Red With Blood.
Based on a true tale of power, corruption and murder, Christopher Walken stars in the story of the largest lynching in American history…Vendetta
Fleeing the famine in Sicily, thousands of Italian families come to America, building their businesses on the docks and in the marketplaces. To the wealthy businessmen and their political cronies it seems like an invasion of property that has to be dealt with. It will be dealt with in New Orleans.
Seeking to wrest control of the docks from the Macheca family, cotton dealer James Houston (Walken) and a ruthless cabal of businessmen orchestrate the murder of one of their own. Nineteen Italian men are arrested for the murder including the heads fo the most important families in New Orleans. Nine will be put on trial - but their lives aren't balanced on the scales of justice. Their lives are in the hands of an angry mob, marching towards the prison gates, enraged, embittered and armed.
Mooviees.com is not the official site for this film.
All editorial views and opinions expressed here are for entertainment purposes only.
<>
Movie Database
In Theaters
