As the history of modern (1970-95) Italy plays out - the kidnapping of Aldo Mora, the Bologna bombing etc. - a ruthless gang of outsiders are successfully muscling in on Rome's lucrative drug and gambling rackets. Meanwhile, a hard-nosed detective is tracking their activities, seeking evidence to put them away. And lurking even deeper in the background are State black ops figures who may or may not be manipulating both the criminals and the events themselves.I was expecting the sort of cheap crime exploitation movie that proliferated in Italian cinema back in the 70s, but this is a different, much more ambitious and better type of movie. Crime Novel is structured very much like an Italian version of American Gangster. It has the same intimate yet gritty feel, the same long slow story arc, playing out over years against a background of world events; the dedicated cop who seems like the only police official who sees his duty as catching criminals rather than taking bribes; and drug dealers who see themselves as businessmen providing a service rather than villains, and most of time they are. The focus is clearly on the gang. They grew up together in the streets. Crime and friendship are what holds them together. They have strong loyalties to those closest to them but can be ruthless to those who oppose them. Individually, they have frailties, but together they are formidable. The script is structured to provide each of the central characters with plenty of screen time, and its strong dialogue and intimate tone create very multi-dimensional and mostly sympathetic portraits.The resulting movie is very watchable and a worthy companion piece to movies like Carlito's Way, Scarface and American Gangster. Recommended.

By chance I stumbled on a DVD copy of this film and have just finished watching it - all 150 minutes of it. The 2.5 hrs went by fast as I was absorbed by the story and the characters in it. Acting by the several actors was good, although I know none of them. Directing was smooth. The only things missing was my understanding of the political backdrop in Italy in the 70's. This knowledge would have enabled to understanding the plot better.On the other hand, my ignorance of the director, the actors, and the backdrop time period gives me total objectivity - I watched it strictly for a cinematic experience. And I was not disappointed.

The problem with this movie is that it is misunderstood. It contains the Hollywood likings with it being compared to scarface and godfather..... American gangster movies. This is NOT an American movie its European, it contains everything that a contemporary European movie has at its heart. The movie focuses on love, emotions, relationships and evokes those true emotions of past historical events. Yet with Hollywood narrative conventions this will confuse or put a strictly Hollywood audience on edge and raise questions.But do not be put off this is an excellent movie those who like the documentary style of City of God will not be disappointed with this movie as the cinematography will have frequent reminders of it! The acting is superb there are few flaws in any of the acting in this movie, all is believable and lovable, as an audience you are automatically emotionally attached to the characters. Especially those of Ice, Dandy and Lebanese.This movie is hard to criticise yet it may confuse some members of its audience yet definitely worth seeing! For those who have never seen a foreign film this maybe hard going with its over 2 hour running time but you will not be disappointed!

Critics compared this to the likes The Godfather and Goodfellas - I wasn't convinced by these comparisons, nor should you.It's no where near as good as Goodfellas or The Godfather, which is what people have compared it to. The director can't decide whether to have the viscera nature of Scorsese's film, or the elegant violence of The Godfather.Most of the time I was bored by this film. It takes itself far too seriously and feels about as populated as Chernobyl. It is like the character Ice - cold; a gangster film which is passable and doesn't have much heart.