First off...Ted Demme was in my opinion one of the most talented directors of his era. This film is top notch in performance, environment, the shots of Boston ( Tobin Bridge, Bunker Hill ) just add to the atmosphere which Demme has created. Dennis Leary proves once again that his talent lies far beyond comedy. Its in the after affect of the violence which is major element in the film that Leary and the rest of the cast shines. The music is so well placed for this film, it saturates the scenes with emotion. Emotion, which is a major element of this film is what drives Leary's character throughout the film. Depressing to a point, yet in the end you feel that perhaps Bobby (Leary) has done whats nessecary. I myself felt that If was in the situation his character was placed in I would act the same. If you enjoy his character in Rescue Me, you should see his performance here.

I think this movie was much better than others in this genre, like "Mean Streets" or much ballyhooed and similar location, "Mystic River". The characters and dialog are A1, Dennis Leary really impressed me. Colm Meaney was truly a meaney and not his Star Trek O'Brien nice guy non-com role. It was more character than plot driven and is lean on the violence, so shoot 'em up freaks will be disappointed. I borrowed this from the library cause I never remembered this one when it debuted cause it had no publicity. Truly a gem in this genre and won't disappoint you. It has a great insight into the Irish Boston working class world without exploiting it or lapsing into sentimentality.

'Noose' (a.k.a. 'Snitch') is a movie that sneaks up on you. I stumbled across it almost by accident and watched it mainly because of the cast. The late Ted Demme directed, and personally I enjoyed this more than his better known 'Blow'. It contains a few dull spots but overall, it's a pretty interesting and effective look at small time crooks and their attitudes towards family and loyalty. Denis Leary once again proves he has some genuine talent as an actor, not just as a comedian. He basically makes this movie, though Ian Hart ('Backbeat') is also very good. Leary's co-star in 'Jesus Son' Billy Crudup appears in a small supporting role. It's a pity they didn't share more on screen time together because they make a memorable duo, as anyone who has seen 'Jesus Son' will agree. Colm Meaney ('Con Air') makes an intimidating bad guy, and Famke Janssen ('X-Men') is not only astonishingly beautiful but she is also believable as a troubled local caught between Leary and Meaney. It was also good to see the highly underrated John Diehl ('Motorama') as one of Leary's buddies and Martin Sheen ('Badlands') has a nice turn as a frustrated local cop. The cast here is sometimes better than the occasionally predictable script, but on the whole this movie is worth watching. Above average.

First off, I only got the movie because JASON BARRY was in it, he played Tommy Ryan in TITANIC,I was not sure if it would be good or not, but it was. Dennis Leary was amazing,as he usually he is,he was tough and caring all at the same time. He loved his cousin (Jason Barry-Seamus O'grady)very much,but he wanted to be a man,so he didn't show his love.