‘By Any Means’ Review: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Shines in Uneven Drama
After an incredible feature directorial debut with The Inspection, Elegance Bratton returns with a more politically charged drama by recounting the unlikely alliance between the FBI and the mob in By Any Means. While this partnership has never been officially confirmed by the bureau, historical records indicate that the agency hired notorious mob enforcer Gregory Scarpa Sr. (Mark Wahlberg) to perform several undercover, “off the books” jobs. No one knew why he was enlisted by the FBI, but many speculate it was to escape prison sentences for his involvement in the Colombo Crime Family.
Scarpa was able to beat (and kill) anyone he wanted under the protection of the Federal Bureau of Investigation if it gave results on the cases he was investigating. Such a corrupt practice from top to bottom deserves deeper exploration, but Bratton’s movie, written by Sascha Penn, refuses to dig beyond its surface.
By Any Means is an emotionally powerful drama without much depth
By Any Means arguably establishes an interesting dynamic between FBI agent Wayne Strider (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) and Scarpa. The former is tasked by his superiors (David Strathairn & Josh Lucas) with serving as his handler during an active investigation.
Scarpa must find the people responsible for civil rights leader Vernon Dahmer’s (Giancarlo Esposito) murder “by any means necessary.” The Jim Crow era might have ended in 1966, but the town of Hattiesburg in Mississippi is filled with a bevy of racist, dehumanizing criminals.
Scarpa and Strider have full immunity to do whatever is required to bring all of them to justice, alive or dead. As such, the film interestingly positions itself as a story of contradictions, in which Bratton explores the moral rot at its center.
Truth be told, any member of the Ku Klux Klan who gets arrested by the police or the FBI will likely not face prison time. In fact, the closing text reveals that of the thirteen men brought to trial, only four were found guilty and sentenced to prison.
While the Jim Crow laws were effectively abolished at the time, the system in place still does not benefit Black people, and such an issue persists to this very day. It’s a system that ensures that whoever perpetrates violence will most likely walk away and that “justice” is never truly found.
I mean, there are scenes in this film where the FBI agent is accused of impersonating an officer because he was one of the few people of color working in the agency. These scenes are extremely difficult to watch, as Bratton’s camera lingers on Strider’s (a fictitious character inspired by Lindley DeVecchio) panic-ridden face, not knowing what to say or do, even though every word uttered by him is the absolute truth.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II’s impressive performance
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II continues to impress as one of the best actors today, imbuing his portrayal of Strider with such depth and complexity that we always feel for him, no matter what unfolds before him. Bratton devotes most of the film’s focus to him and the psychological shift that occurs once the Klan targets his family, most specifically his wife (played by Nicole Beharie).
When such a gut-wrenching scene like this occurs, it brings us closer to the protagonist, who is foregoing all the rules in an attempt to find the people responsible for not only Dahmer’s murder but the attack on his life. And what happens when an agent who has been trained in the system and to respect its rules decides to follow the path of a ruthless mobster who has no rules?
Sadly, this question remains unanswered as By Any Means delves into more violent territory. Of course, Scarpa’s idea of “justice” is to kill everyone, but the movie barely gets a chance to deepen the chasm between both characters during its first half, which renders their eventual union moot.
Mark Wahlberg has no business being in this film
It also doesn’t help that Mark Wahlberg is woefully miscast as Scarpa. Maybe his performance could have worked better without the garish prosthetic nose plastered on his face (a truly unnecessary prop that makes the actor look terribly silly). But one still feels as if he’s playing Mark Wahlberg and not a menacing caporegime who refuses to play by the rules and creates an unstable dynamic between the agent and himself.
It’s a good thing that Bratton’s direction is competent enough to compensate. Especially when staging action sequences of vivid emotional power (one specific first-person shot predates massive tragedy) that are expressively visualized. This is punctuated by Terence Blanchard’s incredible music, or else By Any Means would’ve been considered a massive sophomore slump.
By Any Means movie rating and final thoughts
It’s also unfortunate that Penn’s screenplay repeats numerous lines instead of fleshing out the core partnership at the heart of the story and why such a pairing doesn’t really benefit anybody; because, given the result, few of those who got indicted actually spent time in jail.
It is worth noting that Oscar-nominee Diane Warren is vying for another nomination (and potential win) with an original song written for the film, titled “By Any Means,” and I firmly believe it’s her year. Well, if she can get over the Taylor Swift of it all, the song itself is a major highlight of the film, with potent lyrics powerfully sung by The Isley Brothers. You can’t get any better than that as an Academy Award contender now, can you? If only the film surrounding that piece of music were just as powerful.
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