he is a small—time hood in prohibition boston and doesn't want to be a gangster. he finds himself travelling to florida where he becomes exactly what he didn't want to be. he goes up against the ku klux klan. the interesting thing about the film is it has an extraordinary pedigree. chris cooper, elle fanning, and affleck himself. i think one of the reasons it has sniffy reviews is when you have that kind of talent, people expect something more than a film which is ok. you said invoking casablanca, this film invokes the godfather and scarface and it is neither of those films. it is handsome but in a way which is artificial. it does look good and there are... certainly, i wasn't bored. but it does have a sense of its handsomeness is more important than any depth. it is very much to do with surface. there is stuff in there