By Any Means opens with Wahlberg, Abdul-Mateen II in civil rights thriller
The film pairs an FBI agent and mob hitman investigating KKK murders in 1960s Mississippi, drawing mixed reviews for its approach to historical drama.
What to know
- "By Any Means" pairs a Black FBI agent (Abdul-Mateen II) with a mob hitman (Wahlberg) to investigate the 1966 KKK firebombing death of NAACP leader Vernon Dahmer in Mississippi.
- Critics find the film effective as action-thriller but uneven in its historical approach, praised for its leads' performances while questioned for exploitation of true events.
- The film takes creative liberties: the FBI agent is a composite character while the hitman Gregory Scarpa was real, used as an off-the-books asset by the FBI under pressure to solve civil rights murders.
“Bratton and scriptwriter Sascha Penn artfully straddle the various divides and historical animosities while delivering a propulsive, muscular and unvarnished action thriller, a sort of "Mississippi Burning" for a new generation.”
AP, Film critic · AP News
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Lead actor, FBI agent Wayne Strider
Mark Wahlberg Lead actor, mob hitman Gregory Scarpa
Elegance Bratton DirectorSascha Penn Screenwriter
The record 9 articles and posts · last 30 days
- summary covers to here · Sep 3, 8:03 PM · 4 pieces above arrived after
What people are saying 3 voices from 2 sites · verbatim
- Sep 6
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“By Any Means,” both as a history lesson and as a flash point of current politics, takes on a great responsibility and a grave one. Richard Brody writes. Read his review of the film.
- Sep 4
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“By Any Means,” starring Mark Wahlberg and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, brings a gangland perspective to the legal battle for civil rights in the 1960s.
- Sep 3
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‘By Any Means’ Review: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Mark Wahlberg in a Shallow, if Occasionally Gripping, Historical Crime Thriller https://www. hollywoodreporter.com/movies/m ovie-reviews/by-any-means-review-mark-wahlberg-yahya-abdul-mateen-ii-1236687106/?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub Posted into Movie Reviews @ movie-reviews-THR