Organized crime in Buffalo, N.Y. has seen better days. The Polish mob owns the only “tiny piece of this city that the Blacks don’t already have” and the Irish (bankrolled by the Chinese) want it. The confrontation comes at an inconvenient time for the Poles, as recruitments are low and their only muscle is Frank Falenczyk (Ben Kingsley), a middle-aged hit man who is going on sick leave.

We first meet Frank shoveling snow in front of his house. His carrot on a stick for this exercise is a bottle of vodka that he tosses a few feet in front of him only to rediscover and sample it a few shovelfuls later — another sip, another toss. In somewhat sophisticated parlance for a mobster, his associate notes that Frank has a “substance abuse problem.” So with an offer he can’t refuse, Frank heads for the West Coast to dry out.

He arrives in San Francisco and is greeted by Dave (Bill Pullman) who has a job and apartment waiting to keep the chronic imbiber sheltered and busy while attending AA meetings. His employment at a mortuary involves giving makeovers to the deceased in preparation for viewing.

Kingsley, a fine actor, has a very thin line to walk in this dark comedy. Portraying a behavioral, if not moral, makeover — a whimsical storyline — is deceptively demanding. Kingsley shows his knighthood was well deserved, making an incredible character credible and keeping a farce from becoming farcical.

Frank’s transition from a cold-blooded assassin to a touchy-feely executioner is facilitated by his growing candor at AA meetings and a love interest — both extremely foreign territory for a man who admits he has never had a sober date. Finding a partner brings redemption for his character and for the movie. It’s difficult to say which one needed it most. On the whole, the movie is more novel, than accomplished but is certainly passable.

The History Detectives
KCTS (PBS), Mondays at 9 p.m.

The History Detectives, a PBS show in its fifth season, is a type of Antiques Roadshow that explores the history of arcane objects from the past. Visiting various experts across the country, the show’s hosts unwind the puzzle of identifying the use and significance of various finds.

The value of the show lies in the facts not in the drama. Although the topics are well-chosen, the analysis, even of the more interesting topics, has more of an academic than an entertainment flavor. However, in the upcoming episode, a segment on Amos and Andy, the data, even in its raw form, is intriguing. (At the time it aired, the show was the most popular radio program ever, with one-third of the nation tuning in.) n