Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
A portrait of union leader James R. Hoffa, as seen through the eyes of his friend, Bobby Ciaro. The film follows Hoffa through his countless battles with the RTA and President Roosevelt.
Hoffa is anchored by Jack Nicholson's towering, committed performance as the legendary Teamsters boss, earning a genuine 4 for Acting. Danny DeVito's direction is solid and the period recreation is competent but unremarkable visually, landing Cinematography at a 3. The plot, structured through Bobby Ciaro's eyes, provides an interesting framing but the episodic rise-and-fall narrative feels familiar to the biopic genre, placing Plot at a 3. Novelty gets a 3 — David Mamet's sharp, stylized dialogue gives the film a distinctive voice, but the corrupt-labor-boss story covers well-trodden ground. The ending, depicting Hoffa's mysterious disappearance with a stylized noir flourish, is effective but not exceptional, earning a 3.