So the other reviews on here are either associated with the production or were paid. Look, this a run of the mill gangster/revenge film completed sunk by a lame ending. Come to think of it, my 4/10 may be generous.
22 Reviews
SMH
Randall-Flagg0122 June 2018
"This is America. What's wrong with you!"
hwg1957-102-26570429 October 2021
Warning: Spoilers
A criminal comes to America, New York actually, and muscles in on other criminals. A standard story told in a sub-standard way. One has seen this all before and done better. It was written by Danny A. Abeckaser. It was directed by Danny A. Abeckaser. The main character was played by Danny A. Abeckaser. Of the three Dannys the acting one was marginally better than the directing one and the writing one, but that isn't saying much. The abrupt ending doesn't help. It does have the great Harvey Keitel but he is hardly in it. It's all rather routine.
Pure Drivel.
objective_truth24 November 2018
Warning: Spoilers
There is NO WAY that any one would review this movie positively unless asked to by someone involved in the production.
Want to know why?
Picture this:
A young, olive-skinned violent criminal gets out of prison, moves to the US. Quickly gets sucked into the underworld, kills some dudes, sells some coke, rapidly climbs the ranks - gets cocky - gets the blonde - short-fuse and false notions of invincibility leads to inevitable death.
Only, Al Pacino and Michelle Pfeiffer don't star in this movie..
"First we take Brooklyn" or "Brooklyn Guns" screams after-school special - but adds in cliche characterization - a terribly unoriginal and predictable script and cringe-worthy performances from all actors. It's just an awful film all around, even for independent crime-movie standards.
Want to know why?
Picture this:
A young, olive-skinned violent criminal gets out of prison, moves to the US. Quickly gets sucked into the underworld, kills some dudes, sells some coke, rapidly climbs the ranks - gets cocky - gets the blonde - short-fuse and false notions of invincibility leads to inevitable death.
Only, Al Pacino and Michelle Pfeiffer don't star in this movie..
"First we take Brooklyn" or "Brooklyn Guns" screams after-school special - but adds in cliche characterization - a terribly unoriginal and predictable script and cringe-worthy performances from all actors. It's just an awful film all around, even for independent crime-movie standards.
Horrible Ending but good acting
Saracen7825 November 2018
It's like watching Scarface but this movie really let me down..
Same Scarface lines, main character gets the blonde from his enemy.. get rich too fast off cocaine.. it's like they had Scarface playing while filming this and changed a few things around.. waste of time
Same Scarface lines, main character gets the blonde from his enemy.. get rich too fast off cocaine.. it's like they had Scarface playing while filming this and changed a few things around.. waste of time
Garbage in the First degree
Mobileuniverse31 May 2020
Why, Harvey Keitel, Why?!
gregberne114 December 2019
Harvey Keitel is a great actor and he has no business being in this Z-grade mob flick. I sincerely hope they gave him millions for this because I can see no other reason why he would deign to appear in it. The other actors all range from community dinner theater level to mediocre. The writing is predictable and stupid. It looks cheap all around. I'll bump it up to a two because Keitel is in it, but this movie should be skipped by everyone.
Poor acting and manus...
makl-4858027 February 2018
A vanity project for Danny A. Abeckaser, but suprisingly with good results
Ed-Shullivan21 May 2019
When I see any film that is written, diected and "stars" one individual it typically is a formula for a real disaster, a bomb, a dud. As the movie comences we see actor/writer/director Danny A. Abeckaser, who plays a hood named Mikki, being released from an Israeli prison after serving an 18 year term for murder when he was a youth of 17. His deceased mother has left Mikki a letter and a little bit of money to allow him to fly to Brooklyn New York to stay with his mother's brother, his Uncle Dudu (Eli Danker).
Immediately Mikki's fearless approach to earning a living and his will to survive put the film on a fast track to success which was a pleasant surprise. Yes, the film work and camera angles lack the crispness of a Martin Scorcese produced film which I am sure is due to the limited financial backing Danny A. Abeckaser had behind him. Maybe Danny boy thought he could pull off what Sylvester Stallone was able to pull off with his three (3) time Oscar winning 1973 film Rocky. Although First We Take Brooklyn / Brooklyn Guns did not achieve any box office success, I suggest it is a decent enough crime film worthy of any crime genre film lovers' viewing pleasure. The ending may surprise you too!
A worthy 6/10 rating
Immediately Mikki's fearless approach to earning a living and his will to survive put the film on a fast track to success which was a pleasant surprise. Yes, the film work and camera angles lack the crispness of a Martin Scorcese produced film which I am sure is due to the limited financial backing Danny A. Abeckaser had behind him. Maybe Danny boy thought he could pull off what Sylvester Stallone was able to pull off with his three (3) time Oscar winning 1973 film Rocky. Although First We Take Brooklyn / Brooklyn Guns did not achieve any box office success, I suggest it is a decent enough crime film worthy of any crime genre film lovers' viewing pleasure. The ending may surprise you too!
A worthy 6/10 rating
Worst ending, don't waste your time!
jbats-1263813 May 2022
Actually quite an impressive and entertaining B-grade Indie crime/drama film
Top_Dawg_Critic20 February 2018
I'm shocked at the low score for this film. I had low expectations going into this, but I was pleasantly impressed by this indie low budget B-grade film.
This film stars and was also produced by Danny A. Abeckaser, who made his directorial debut, and his second writing credit, shared with co-star Jon Carlo. Harvey Keitel played the perfect Russian mobster, and it was nice to see some eye candy that can act, Charlotte McKinney and primarily co-star beauty AnnaLynne McCord.
If anyone is expecting to see a huge big budget Hollywood produced gangster film, this is not it. But it achieves its goal in keeping the viewer submersed and entertained. The pace was perfect, the directing and screenplay on point, and the actors, although not all seasoned A-listers (except for Harvey Keitel of course), performed quite well and convincing in their roles.
It's a shame reviewers will slam this film by comparing it to Hollywood gangster films and expecting so much more from such a small indie production. I for one am impressed and give this a well deserved 7.5/10 rounded up to a 8.
This film stars and was also produced by Danny A. Abeckaser, who made his directorial debut, and his second writing credit, shared with co-star Jon Carlo. Harvey Keitel played the perfect Russian mobster, and it was nice to see some eye candy that can act, Charlotte McKinney and primarily co-star beauty AnnaLynne McCord.
If anyone is expecting to see a huge big budget Hollywood produced gangster film, this is not it. But it achieves its goal in keeping the viewer submersed and entertained. The pace was perfect, the directing and screenplay on point, and the actors, although not all seasoned A-listers (except for Harvey Keitel of course), performed quite well and convincing in their roles.
It's a shame reviewers will slam this film by comparing it to Hollywood gangster films and expecting so much more from such a small indie production. I for one am impressed and give this a well deserved 7.5/10 rounded up to a 8.
Regular Joe Reviews
SYOTOS195427 February 2020
Don't expect too much from this film ,but it is worth a look. I was not familiar with most of the cast with the exception of Harvey Keitel (who was onscreen for a heartbeat) but they all gave solid performances.
I particularly liked the gritty look and feel of the film, there were times I felt I could smell the stale beer on the bar floor. The ending was terrible not much to say except -WHY?
So if you are looking for film showcasing new faces and a bit of a twist on an old formula mob movie , give it a whirl - A solid B movie
First You Need to be Stoned
MattG30325 January 2022
Terrible movie all around: horrible acting, cheesy writing, bad cinematography, predictable and obvious plot. Just because it's about some low-life criminals, drugs and money does not make it interesting! But throw in a blonde bimbo or two and I'm sure it'll entertain most of you morons. I had to look up the actress's name she was so terrible, AnnaLynne McCord, Utterly McCrap. You must be really stoned to enjoy this garbage!
Grand Theft Auto IV the movie
juliankennedy231 January 2019
Warning: Spoilers
First We Take Brooklyn: 6 out of 10: This small-scale gangster film is the story of a recently released Israeli prisoner coming to Brooklyn to make his mark in the underworld.
The Good: Am I dreaming or is this basically Grand Theft Auto IV the movie. Hey, Nico, it's me Roman let's go bowling. If you have played Grand Theft Auto IV, or seen basically any gangster film ever, you know the story. Our hero writer, director, and star Danny A. Abeckaser is released from prison in Isreal and sets up shop in Brooklyn where his uncle a small-time fence, His Uncle gets him to work with local small-time gangster and bar owner. The bar owner in question is being pressured by the Russian mob lead by Harvey Keitel and our hero takes the fight to them.
With a couple of exceptions listed below, this is a solid movie. The scale is small and the budget low. No one actually takes Brooklyn mind you. Honestly, they barely control a city block. The realism is refreshing however with the gangsters speaking their native language and the violence matching the scale of the conflict.
Danny A. Abeckaser deserves a lot of credit this is a very solid debut film. The cast is pretty decent with the stunning AnnaLynne McCord as a standout. Though bluntly she looks a little out of place as a bartender in a smokey dive bar.
The Bad: Those who want to see Harvey Keitel get his nails done are in luck. Those that wanted to see the guy featured on the cover do anything more than a glorified cameo will be disappointed.
The Ugly: There is one scene that just sticks in my craw. I will call it the restaurant date scene. It has Danny A. Abeckaser and AnnaLynne McCord eating at a high-end restaurant to celebrate Danny becoming a rich gangster during the last rap music montage. The set looks like they put one of those Italian Resturant tables in the middle of a parking lot. The lighting is all sorts of wrong giving the impression of a used car lot at night rather than a high-end dining establishment. The guy playing the waiter can barely say his lines and then AnnaLynne drops the line "OMG you really are a powerful gangster now. You just told that guy what to do and he does it for you." Um, AnnaLynne that guy is a waiter and that is what waiters do. Getting someone the "best" champagne is not the sign that your guy is a gangster. It is a sign that the waiter just made an upsell. It really is a bizarrely bad scene in an otherwise competent film.
In Conclusion: Enjoyable film that makes want to see more from both Danny A. Abeckaser and AnnaLynne McCord and relieved that Harvey Keitel kept his pants on.
The Good: Am I dreaming or is this basically Grand Theft Auto IV the movie. Hey, Nico, it's me Roman let's go bowling. If you have played Grand Theft Auto IV, or seen basically any gangster film ever, you know the story. Our hero writer, director, and star Danny A. Abeckaser is released from prison in Isreal and sets up shop in Brooklyn where his uncle a small-time fence, His Uncle gets him to work with local small-time gangster and bar owner. The bar owner in question is being pressured by the Russian mob lead by Harvey Keitel and our hero takes the fight to them.
With a couple of exceptions listed below, this is a solid movie. The scale is small and the budget low. No one actually takes Brooklyn mind you. Honestly, they barely control a city block. The realism is refreshing however with the gangsters speaking their native language and the violence matching the scale of the conflict.
Danny A. Abeckaser deserves a lot of credit this is a very solid debut film. The cast is pretty decent with the stunning AnnaLynne McCord as a standout. Though bluntly she looks a little out of place as a bartender in a smokey dive bar.
The Bad: Those who want to see Harvey Keitel get his nails done are in luck. Those that wanted to see the guy featured on the cover do anything more than a glorified cameo will be disappointed.
The Ugly: There is one scene that just sticks in my craw. I will call it the restaurant date scene. It has Danny A. Abeckaser and AnnaLynne McCord eating at a high-end restaurant to celebrate Danny becoming a rich gangster during the last rap music montage. The set looks like they put one of those Italian Resturant tables in the middle of a parking lot. The lighting is all sorts of wrong giving the impression of a used car lot at night rather than a high-end dining establishment. The guy playing the waiter can barely say his lines and then AnnaLynne drops the line "OMG you really are a powerful gangster now. You just told that guy what to do and he does it for you." Um, AnnaLynne that guy is a waiter and that is what waiters do. Getting someone the "best" champagne is not the sign that your guy is a gangster. It is a sign that the waiter just made an upsell. It really is a bizarrely bad scene in an otherwise competent film.
In Conclusion: Enjoyable film that makes want to see more from both Danny A. Abeckaser and AnnaLynne McCord and relieved that Harvey Keitel kept his pants on.
Not Your Average Gangster Movie
maverick-849246 March 2018
Warning: Spoilers
First We Take Brooklyn is quite a gritty, visceral movie. Taking a totally different direction than most mainstream gangster movies, it tells the story of Mikki, a violent ex-con recently released from prison in Israel who goes to America to make his life better.
The Jewish Brooklyn patois that pervades the movie is quite different and refreshing without the cliched black or Italian influence. Some might dislike the use of subtitles, but they add a degree of authenticity to many conversations that would otherwise be a little flat if spoken in English.
Harvey Keitel plays a good supporting role as the Russian mob boss as does Edoardo Ballerini as his son, Dimitri. Annalynne McChord plays the gorgeous Esther alongside a very nervous brother Arik, played by Sasha Feldman.
The movie's principal star is Danny A. Abeckaser, who also directed and produced this low-budget piece, playing the role of Mikki.
All the actors really nailed their respective roles in my opinion and, given the predominantly US locations (excepting the opening minutes in Israel), the film's budget didn't detract from this. I'm guessing Abeckaser has called in a few favours as all seem really involved and committed to their respective roles.
One minor complaint would be the time shifts within the movie. Some are for artistic use such as the cab ride starting in Israel and concluding in Brooklyn, but others seem to jar a little. One minute Mikki is a newly arrived immigrant, the next, he's wheeling and dealing with the big guys. Perhaps a longer movie might have added some meat to these scenes, although some might complain that it would be padding.
The only thing that didn't sit well with me was the ending. Sure, Mikki was a violent thug who led the life and died appropriately, but the abruptness and rolling credits moment's later didn't tie anything up for my mind. The duplicitous Avi, played by Guri Weinberg ambushes our hero, but that's it. Nothing on how the Russians reacted to this peace offering, nothing on how Esther reacted, especially given her pregnancy, not even any real emotion from Avi, beyond badgering Arik into sorting out the ambush.
In closing, The Godfather or Scarface it ain't, but then it didn't have half those iconic films' budgets. This is an excellent movie and I'm interested to see what else Danny Abeckaser can come up with in the future.
The Jewish Brooklyn patois that pervades the movie is quite different and refreshing without the cliched black or Italian influence. Some might dislike the use of subtitles, but they add a degree of authenticity to many conversations that would otherwise be a little flat if spoken in English.
Harvey Keitel plays a good supporting role as the Russian mob boss as does Edoardo Ballerini as his son, Dimitri. Annalynne McChord plays the gorgeous Esther alongside a very nervous brother Arik, played by Sasha Feldman.
The movie's principal star is Danny A. Abeckaser, who also directed and produced this low-budget piece, playing the role of Mikki.
All the actors really nailed their respective roles in my opinion and, given the predominantly US locations (excepting the opening minutes in Israel), the film's budget didn't detract from this. I'm guessing Abeckaser has called in a few favours as all seem really involved and committed to their respective roles.
One minor complaint would be the time shifts within the movie. Some are for artistic use such as the cab ride starting in Israel and concluding in Brooklyn, but others seem to jar a little. One minute Mikki is a newly arrived immigrant, the next, he's wheeling and dealing with the big guys. Perhaps a longer movie might have added some meat to these scenes, although some might complain that it would be padding.
The only thing that didn't sit well with me was the ending. Sure, Mikki was a violent thug who led the life and died appropriately, but the abruptness and rolling credits moment's later didn't tie anything up for my mind. The duplicitous Avi, played by Guri Weinberg ambushes our hero, but that's it. Nothing on how the Russians reacted to this peace offering, nothing on how Esther reacted, especially given her pregnancy, not even any real emotion from Avi, beyond badgering Arik into sorting out the ambush.
In closing, The Godfather or Scarface it ain't, but then it didn't have half those iconic films' budgets. This is an excellent movie and I'm interested to see what else Danny Abeckaser can come up with in the future.
And second we switch the TV off.
searchanddestroy-121 March 2021
Or Diary Of a Loser. The main character was obliously inspired by Al Pacino in SCARFACE or CARLITO'S WAY, but he unfortunately is not Pacino. The story itself is very simple and realistic; no hero here, only petty punks story as we already have seen a thousand times before, but I repeat, more simple, in a so unbelievable way that it even becomes flat and boring, predictable and forgettable. No gufights either nor exceptional scenes. i will rapidly forget this one, drowned among the dozens of other features speaking of the La or NYC underworld, with petty punks from the Black, Jewish, Russian or Irish community. Not bad at all though. Because not ambitious, only realistic. You can't have everything.
There's nothing wrong with wanting to be Al Pacino
Nozz5 March 2022
Warning: Spoilers
There's nothing wrong with wanting to be Al Pacino. There were al pacinos before Al Pacino and there will be al pacinos after Al Pacino. Danny Abeckaser is an okay al pacino. The sincere-looking stare seems to be his specialty. Not a great deal seems to have been asked of the main supporting cast except to have interesting faces (mostly they do) and not to chew the scenery. I think the only failure is the female lead. Unlike the others, she seems actually to have a character arc but she doesn't quite put it across.
I saw the movie on Israeli TV and I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned how much Hebrew is in it. Maybe the version shown in Israel isn't exactly the same as the version shown elsewhere? It was a little weird hearing an Israeli prison guard speaking Hebrew with an American accent but, as others have noted, obviously this is a movie made under budgetary constraints. There are no big set pieces or big dramatic speeches, but that's fine with me. Life generally doesn't include big set pieces or big dramatic speeches. However, despite being co-writer, writer, producer, and director as well as lead actor, Abeckaser hasn't given the audience much of a reason to care about his protagonist. A tough background isn't necessarily enough to engage sympathy.
I saw the movie on Israeli TV and I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned how much Hebrew is in it. Maybe the version shown in Israel isn't exactly the same as the version shown elsewhere? It was a little weird hearing an Israeli prison guard speaking Hebrew with an American accent but, as others have noted, obviously this is a movie made under budgetary constraints. There are no big set pieces or big dramatic speeches, but that's fine with me. Life generally doesn't include big set pieces or big dramatic speeches. However, despite being co-writer, writer, producer, and director as well as lead actor, Abeckaser hasn't given the audience much of a reason to care about his protagonist. A tough background isn't necessarily enough to engage sympathy.
A must see
allurephotostudio22 February 2018
I really enjoyed this film. Danny Abeckaser was absolutely incredible as well as the rest of the cast. A very believable group of actors. It's clear that this was a project of passion for everyone involved. You feel it in every moment of the film.
I can't wait to see what comes next from Writer/Actor, Jon Carlo. This was just awesome.
Great Movie !!
info-20462-7695220 February 2018
Love Indie crime films
idadaspida36 May 2020
Danny Abeckaser was really good in this indie crime film. I love the rivalry of the Jewish and the Russians. I was rooting for Mikki. He was my bad good guy. He always meant well but it never turned out like he wanted. I love Harvey Keitel as well. I knew he would be one of the bosses. Shocked at the low score.
Fantastic
ezranimrodi27 December 2020
Hernan
jackholmes50723 April 2019
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