To say any more would be a waste because if you’re a Coen Brothers fan, you’ve undoubtedly experienced its incredible surprises first-hand. Leo’s decision to spare Bernie’s life creates a rift that grows exponentially as the story progresses - a rift between Leo and the other crime families and a rift between Leo and Tom. Johnny’s opening monologue is a plea for Leo to give him allowance to kill a conniving bookie named Bernie Bernbaum (John Turturro, in one of his greatest performances), who just so happens to be the brother of Leo’s current flame, Verna (Marcia Gay Harden). Tom is a man struggling to maintain a grip on his own ethics as a Prohibition-era gangster, an occupation that frequently contradicts one’s having a strong sense of morals. Friendship, character and ethics are indeed what every character wrestles with in one form or another, but none more so than Tom Reagan (Gabriel Byrne), the most trusted confidant and adviser to aging crime boss Leo (Albert Finney). Those words, spoken by mid-level gangster Johnny Caspar (Jon Polito), are the first ones uttered in Joel and Ethan Coen’s exquisite 1990 film Miller’s Crossing, and they continue to echo throughout the ensuing two hours.
I’m talkin’ about - hell, Leo, I ain’t embarrassed to use the word - I’m talkin’ about ethics.”
