by Kristin Ciliberto, Contributing Writer
As the tagline for Screen Media Film’s latest feature The Birthday Cake reads, ‘Revenge Never Tasted So Sweet.’ Well, does it? Jimmy Giannopoulos marks his directorial debut with a film that is a modern day, old school Italian mob feature. Giannopoulos hopes to bring audiences in with a star-studded cast including, Shiloh Fernandez, Ewan McGregor, Val Kilmer, Lorraine Bracco, and so many more.
On the 10th anniversary of his father’s death, Gio (Fernandez) brings a cake to a memorial celebration hosted by his Brooklyn mafia boss, Uncle Angelo (Kilmer). The cake is baked by Sofia (Bracco), to remind everyone about the death of her husband as a memory and celebration. Gio’s life starts to change as he comes to realize what happened to his father.
With a runtime of 93 minutes, the film never loses focus of what is at stake, especially during the last 30 minutes. This creates a suspenseful, thrilling conclusion. However, getting to that journey feels slightly stale. The majority of the film takes place over the course of one night as Gio travels across the gritty Brooklyn streets. The city seems to play a character in the film, but it never gives the sense of danger.
The film draws in from heavy inspirations of other filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino, Martin Scorsese, and Francis Ford Coppola. The script, written by Giannopoulos, alongside Diomedes Raul Bermudez and Fernandez, seems to lack in building up any sort of character development. Gio is not made to join the lifestyle he was born into and wants nothing to deal with it and wants to escape. There isn’t much else to his character who seems to be the good, innocent sweet boy who is lost.
As for the other main characters, Leo (Emory Coen), Gio’s, cousin is seen missing throughout the film and Gio is on the hunt to find him. He’s a critical character, but audiences don’t get to know who Leo is at all. Uncle Angelo is also a mysterious, important character who seems crucial to the film, but doesn’t have a sense of urgency. Kilmer does deserve some credit, but the character he was given comes off as a generic mob boss. Nevertheless, all the performances were fine. The minor supporting cast like Penn Badgley and McGregor help stand out as McGregor provides some narration throughout the film. Some actors seem out of place and others could have been cut from the film to allow for more time to explore the important characters at the center of the film.
The Birthday Cake delivered in more ways than one, and will draw in audiences with the cast and minor surprises that the film has in store.
Grade: C