this could have be brilliant . a it be and it just damn good . a superb tale of friendship and loyalty and trust and sean penn and gary oldman be both absolutely fantastic and give and for my money and the best performance of their career . in fact and there not a bad performance here . it beautifully shot and the music be absolutely spot on and it have that rare ability to get to you deep inside . it just that the final scene be absolutely terrible . first and there a huge slow motion overload and which for me and just doesn not fit . second and without spoil the end and let just say that frankie ( ed harris ) marksmanship leave a lot to be desire and which for a mob bos be absolutely ridiculous . this be the main problem . up and until this moment the film have be a perfect example of believable and gritty realism . then it just throw everything away with a badly think out and unbelievable climax . positive down to an positive just like that .