Michael Shannon's a heartless killer in the trailer for 'The Iceman'

After watching Michael Shannon ham it up in a distracting performance in Premium Rush(review here), those aching to see his usual steely-eyed intensity will find all that and more with The Iceman, in which he plays ruthless mob hitman Richard "The Iceman" Kuklinski. If you ever saw the two HBO documentaries with Kuklinski from his jail cell, then you know he was one heartless dude who used his seemingly normal family life as a cover for his crimes. By the time he was captured it was believed Kuklinski had killed as many as 250 people, freezing many of the bodies to help throw the cops off his trail.

The newly released trailer for The Iceman plays up the duality of Kuklinksi's character and life, with Shannon channeling much of the same violent energy he brings to Boardwalk Empire. The idea of Shannon playing a mafia assassin is likely enough to get most people in theaters, but he's also surrounded by a solid cast including Ray Liotta, David Schwimmer, Stephen Dorff, and Winona Ryder as Kuklinski's clueless wife.  A shaggy-haired Chris Evans plays Kuklinski's partner, Robert "Mr. Softee" Pronge, who ran his operation out of an ice cream truck. And James Franco has a small role as Marty, after once being in line to play Pronge.

The Iceman just hit Venice and so far the reviews have been a little mixed. It'll hit Telluride and Toronto in the coming weeks, which should give us a better idea if a U.S release date is on the way....