documentary of the iceman killer netflix

They are the devoted, if not especially skilled or sensitive, parents of two sweet Catholic School daughters. In reality, he works in a porn lab, which is how he comes to meet and ultimately work for Ray Liotta’s character and work his way up the crime ladder successfully enough that he can eventually convince his family he is in “currency exchange.” “I dub cartoons for Disney,” he tells her, the first of a marriage full of lies. A young Kuklinski is explaining his job on a first date with his prospective wife (Winona Ryder, who should’ve been filmed through much thicker gauze). The movie opens in moody, half-lit, neo-noir 1964 New Jersey. It’s also selective editing on the part of writer/director Ariel Vromen, who seems intent on turning Kuklinski’s life into “A Very Special Sopranos” episode. It’s a testament to Michael Shannon’s powerhouse performance that Kuklinski comes across as nuanced and conflicted - a family man who’s gentle and loving with his wife and kids, aside from an occasional outburst, but happens to make a living in brutality. Short-fused and violent, beaten as a child who in turn tortured dogs and cats, he was always going to be a killer either way the Mob just offered him a career.

Ultimately, the documentary mixes drama and humor to capture the wild exploits of Fainberg and his associates.Although Richard Kuklinski is often described as the infamous contract killer or mob hitman in materials for the new movie inspired by his life, The Iceman, he seems more like a serial killer who just happened upon a few employers who were willing to pay him for his hobby. The political tensions of the era are wholly felt, making for a gangster story that has more weight than might be expected.

Showing that truth is often stranger than fiction, Russell’s documentary feature balances interviews with ex-DEA agents as well as Fainberg and his associates. Operation Odessa traces the wild true story of Russian mobster Ludwig Fainberg, also known as ‘Tarzan’, who managed to bamboozle multiple authorities and agencies to sell a Soviet submarine to the Colombian drug cartel during the 1990s.ĭirected by Tiller Russell, Operation Odessa is a thrilling depiction of how three gangsters sought out an epic score that saw them conning not only the Russian mob, but drug cartels and the DEA.Īs one might expect, this incredible story became a prominent news story when it broke, but Operation Odessa offers an in-depth and up-close look at what exactly transpired.

Documentary of the iceman killer netflix