NINA ARIANDA IN ROB THE MOB So, so, so good.
  • NINA ARIANDA IN ROB THE MOB So, so, so good.

The terrifically entertaining Rob the Mob tells the true story of Tommy and Rosie Uva (played by Michael Pitt and Nina Arianda), a New York couple who, during the height of the John Gotti trial of the early '90s, start raiding and robbing Mafia social clubs. Ray Romano costars as the New York Post columnist covering both Gotti and the self-styled "Bonnie and Clyde," and the whole movie teems with the gritty carnivalesque spirit of early-'90s NYC. It all adds up to an A-plus B-movie, thanks in large part to the amazing Nina Arianda, who gives such a natural, full-blooded, seemingly spontaneous performance I wondered if she might be an extraordinarily self-possessed novice given the role of a lifetime.

But as I learned from a simple Google search, Nina Arianda a totally hot-shit theater actor, the kind that earns rapturous New Yorker profiles and gives New York Times interviews involving questions like these:

Your reviews for “Venus in Fur” have been ridiculously glowing. Mike Nichols said your performance reminded him of when Meryl Streep was first seen onstage. Is that exciting or paralyzing?

Charles Isherwood, in this paper, said your performance “burns so brightly you can almost feel the heat on your face.” Any performance you can recall that almost burned your face off?

So, yeah, she's amazing, and that she translates so powerfully to film is also amazing and, yes, suggests Streepian powers. I can't want to see what she does next, forever. In the meantime, go see Rob the Mob!