Killer instinct

I've always felt that crime drama is essentially about capitalism, since they show the capitalist idea functioning in its most base form. This is exactly what the situation was in 2008 post the recession and hence I decided to take an old plot and link it to one of the most recent economic events that manifested the lack of governance and control

How would you describe your forthcoming film Killing Them Softly?

Set during the 2008 election, the movie coldly observes the fallout when a pair of hapless crooks (Ben Mendelsohn and Scoot McNairy) robs a poker circle. I play the hit man assigned to clean up the mess. The film repeatedly draws parallels to the financial crisis.

Is crime always a corollary of economic/financial crisis or are social reasons equally responsible?

I do agree crime is actually a result of economic/financial crisis because they are funded by gambling—and the crisis occurred due to a failure in regulation. It just seemed to have something that you couldn't ignore…

What sort of preparation does a role such as the one you play in this film require?

I believe George V Higgins was a fantastic writer for his time. I was so spell bound after watching The Friends of Eddy Coyle that I ordered 10 novels written by him and Cogan's Trade was the third that I received by mail. The moment I lay my hands on the book and started reading it, I instantly realised that it needed cinematic treatment: great characters, great dialogue and a very simple plot. I had originally imagined the film as a drama but as I got into it, it struck me that this was a story of an economic crisis; a crisis in a criminal economy supported by gambling, and the problem was caused by a failure to regulate. I've always felt that crime drama is essentially about capitalism, since they show the capitalist idea functioning in its most base form. This is exactly what the situation was in 2008 post the recession and hence I decided to take an old plot and link it to one of the most recent economic events that manifested the lack of governance and control.

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