Search - Taxman (1999) on DVD

Eh...

Richard Novak | Cali | 04/20/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Not sure what everyone is raving about. I watched this movie once, and I was left feeling that they just made a movie for the sake of using some extra film. I thought, "I'll watch it again, maybe I missed something." The second time was no better than the first. I suppose all genres have their followings, but I see no point in this movie. There was no real suspense, the characters, while believeable to a point, are unlikable, and the basis of the movie, a tax collector and a rookie cop, seems sort of [weak] to me. It seems like they threw in the russian mafia as an afterthought. While I was running on the treadmill, someone popped the movie in again, and I couldn't escape the 3rd watching w/o stopping my workout, so now I've seen it a total of 3 times and it's still just as pointless to me. I'm not saying it's a bad movie. I'm just saying it's the cinematic equal of room temp water.Give it a try. You might find it more enjoyable than I did."

Not Surprised this movie wasnt a success

Richard Novak | 08/28/2005

(1 out of 5 stars)

"The characters were terrible. There was no background on any of the characters and you found yourself wanting to know more about the characters. The acting is really sub par in true bmovie fashion. What really sank this movie is the absolutly atrocious dialogue and the fact that the Russian mob are just a bunch of pushover whiners. It is not believable at all that a "taxman" could have accomplished this anyway. The movie is laughable in some parts and incredibly boring for the rest. I'd skip this dreadful movie. I definately had to look at Joe Pantoliano in a much lower light from now on."

Well done cultural thriller

LGwriter | Astoria, N.Y. United States | 11/21/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"A solid piece of work from unknown director Avi Nesher, this casts Joe Pantoliano (The Matrix, Bound, Memento) as a federal tax investigator who teams up with rookie Puerto Rican cop Wade Dominguez (City of Industry) to crack a case involving massive tax fraud in the huge Russian community located in Brooklyn, New York.The two make an intriguing pair. Dominguez shocks the tax investigator, as well as the audience, by speaking excellent Russian, and Pantoliano is just world-weary enough to know that there is a whole lot of corruption going on behind the scenes--and provides a film noirish running commentary on his thoughts through the story. But this works well; the commentary is definitely not overdone, and in fact, it provides a welcome added layer that substantiates Pantoliano's character.Michael Chiklis plays Andre Rubakov, the genial Russian owner of a group of gas stations who is being threatened by Casey Siemaszko's Abrasha Topolev, a slimy Russian gangster. Elizabeth Berkley does much to make up for her disastrous outing in Showgirls as Andre's beautiful daughter, and Robert Townsend is the harried but ultimately helpful Asst. DA who helps the investigating pair track down the real culprits--who've committed murders as well as tax fraud.This is a very good film that unfortunately got poor distribution; it definitely deserves to be seen. Recommended."

This is an amazing movie

Holden Westland | 07/06/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Joe Pantoliano blew me away - I'd bet the bank on this guy! The movie is about a simple tax collector who, through the course of tracking a tax skimming operation involving the oil industry, proves the depth of the simple, honest yet somewhat (if not often) deranged man. I stopped everything that I was doing when this movie was on the toob and I was transfixed. Wade Dominguez is brillaint as his stuttering NYPD sidekick. This is a movie to be watched over and over - it's got that much gerth!"