Billy Bathgate | Full Movie | Movies Anywhere

Despite Dean's alert, open performance, Billy remains an opaque witness to events that are unfolding over his head. Hoffman's performance also is problematic.

Despite a Tom Stoppard script and diligent direction, EL Doctorow's novel about a youngster's experience of the life and times of Dutch Schultz seldom takes off as a movie.

There's plenty of glossy, slick entertainment here if you haven't gotten overly tired of mob flicks.

Billy Bathgate isn't an embarrassment, but it's a puzzle. Watching it, you can't locate the passion that drew the filmmakers to it in the first place.