Ben Affleck writes, directs and stars in Live By Night, a Prohibition-Era gangster film billed to rival the likes of Scarface and The Godfather, but ultimately falls far short.
Affleck stars as Ben Coughlin, a WWI veteran who left as a soldier and came back an outlaw. Don't ask me why, but the movie doesn't do a good job explaining this. The movie does a good job portraying Coughlin as the typical gangster movie anti-hero though. A good man caught up in evil world of the criminal enterprise.
The movie starts in 1920s Boston where Coughlin gets by robbing banks and playing card games. When his secret affair with the girlfriend of crime boss Albert White is discovered, he narrowly escapes death but only to serve a three-year prison term. Upon being released he begins working for mafia capo Maso Pescatore, who sends him down to Florida. After making nice with the police chief (Chris Cooper), Coughlin and his partner, Dion, played by a barely recognizable Chris Messina, begin to make a killing from bootlegging by cornering the rum market.
The movie benefits from the introduction of Zoe Saldana's character, a Cuban activist who becomes Coughlin's lover. The interracial love affair, along with a business deal gone awry, earns him the ire of the KKK. Coughlin unhesitatingly murders the grand wizard mid-sentence, effectively bringing the feud to an end. This happens to be one of the most bad ass scenes in the movie.
With prohibition nearing an end, Coughlin sets his sights on opening a casino in order to keep cash flowing. When he fails, Pescatore loses faith in him and betrays him to his old nemesis Albert White. This leads to the inevitable gangster movie shoot out at the end which always ends in a bloodbath. Coughlin, who has built a loyal following in Tampa, is saved by his men. This allows him to exact revenge of the traitorous Pescatore and the evil Mr. White.
Affleck and Cooper give strong performances, but it's not enough to save this movie. Live by Night suffers from a lack of focus and a protagonist who has no edge to him. Don't expect this movie to be a part of the gangster film canon because you'll be disappointed. I know I was.