Richard ‘Richie’ Kuklinski was a contract killer who worked with the New Jersey mob in the 1970s and 1980s, at the behest of Roy DeMeo (here played by Ray Liotta) and killed over 100 men over the course of that career. In this film, we see how he starts a family alongside this murderous work, with his wife (Winona Ryder) and children being none the wiser about the true nature of his job. Apparently, Richie was killing for a long time before DeMeo comes along and offers him a job. He earns his nickname, the title of the film, for different reasons, but he’s more cold than cool – at several points, he’s accused of being completely unfeeling. Although the film has some interest in Richie’s childhood history of abuse, it’s bound to portray the character with as little sympathy as possible; after a short while into the film, there is no redemption in sight. After watching the film, I went to look at Kuklinski’s Wikipedia page, and found that many of the film’s most memorable moments are actually detailed in the various sections about his life and career. In particular, he once described his most ruthless killing, in detail. Those details are faithfully recreated in a scene featuring a cameo appearance by James Franco. In a weird way, the film almost buckles under Shannon’s lead performance. He’s just as intense and powerful as we know he can be, but the frustration is in wanting the film to find something for him to do, other than scowl and lose his rag. He’s an imposing presence, both physically, and in the midst of a script that has more detached and clinical interests in this particular story. The angle that makes this extraordinary should really be that Kuklinski’s family had no idea of his work – they’re the only sympathetic characters here, with Ryder giving a particularly good show as a woman who gradually starts to realise that something isn’t right in her idyllic family life, but never quite catches on to her husband’s true nature. This is more of a mob movie, and this genre has never really been known for its likeable characters. Mr Freezy and The Iceman are typically flippant nicknames for the kind of work that these men did, and the film generally feels bound to that level of dark humour, as well as the faithful representation of events. Ultimately, The Iceman works through these events in such a way that is not always easy to watch, but comes off as considerably easier to forget. As expected, Michael Shannon is the highlight, with Chris Evans snapping at his heels, but the refreshingly grown-up tone can’t make up for the second half’s descent into repetitive violence and arguments. Follow our Twitter feed for faster news and bad jokes right here. And be our Facebook chum here.