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| “ | Nobody knows anybody. Not that well. | „ |
| ~ Tom's most famous quote. |
| “ | Verna: You think you've raised hell. Tom Reagan: Sister, when I've raised hell, you'll know it! |
„ |
| ~ Tom's answer to Verna about "raising hell," foreshadowing the events of the film. |
Tom Reagan is the villainous main protagonist of the Coen brothers gangster film Miller's Crossing. He is the former right-hand of political boss Liam "Leo" O'Bannon and lover of Verna Bernbaum. As a turf war escalates between Leo and Italian boss Johnny Casper over the sleazy Bernie Bernbaum, Tom is caught in the middle and must navigate the new treacherous gangland in order to stay alive and protect his boss.
He was played by Gabriel Byrne, who also played Satan in End of Days, Erich Kaempffer in The Keep, Fenge in Prince of Jutland and Marcus Duvall in Assault on Precinct 13.
Personality[]
Tom Reagan is a complex character to pin down. With his stoic, calm, and unflinchable demeanor, he puts on a stone-cold façade that leaves everyone around him guessing what he's thinking. Judging from his actions though, he seems to take advantage of any circumstances that come his way. Hoping to protect his boss Leo O'Bannon and pay back the debt he owes, he plays a dangerous with both the Irish and Italian Mob. Whether it be joining a rival crime syndicate or having an affair with his bosses girlfriend, Tom seemingly does this out of his own self-interest.
However, he also appears to hold a set of standards for people he respects, mainly Leo. This is shown when Tom tried to convince Leo to give up Bernie Bernbaum to avoid war, only for Leo to brush it off. Throughout the film, he constantly risks his own life to clean up his boss's messes, only to end up in deeper trouble. However, this loyalty has its limits, such as when he slept with Verna Bernbaum behind Leo's back and when Tom rejected Leo's pleas to return to his side. Tom's loyalty can also be extended to Verna, albeit in a grudging manner. Because they're sleeping together, Tom tries to help Verna with her brother, with him imploring her to reason with her. However, he disagrees with her lustful manipulation of the both of them, calling her a "tramp." The consistent juggling of both Leo and Verna shows constant contradiction of his respect on both sides, making his true loyalties unknown.
What is undoubtedly true about Tom is his cleverness and ability to twist a situation to his own advantage. By revealing his affair with Verna to Leo, Tom is given an invite to join Casper and his organization. From the inside, he is able to sow the seeds of doubt in Casper about his main enforcer, The Dane, so that Casper kills him out of paranoia that he has been cutting into his fixings. He was also able to arrange a meeting so that Casper and Bernie can meet and inevitably kill each other. However, he spared Bernie Bernbaum after he pleads for his life in the woods, resulting in Bernie blackmailing Tom into killing Casper. The reason for sparing Bernie can be chalked up to Tom's love for Verna or out of pity for Bernie, or both. However, he doesn't hesitate a second time in killing Bernie, proving that he doesn't take kindly to being blackmailed.
Overall, Tom's true motivation is mostly based on the circumstances he finds himself in, only trying to ensure that he stays alive and benefits from whichever side necessary. And because of his restrained persona and cold, emotionless face, no one knows what he truly wants, adding to the ambiguity of his character.
Biography[]
Miller's Crossing[]
In the beginning[]
Tom Reagan is the right-hand man of political boss Liam "Leo" O'Bannon, who has served him loyally for years. However, he has also been racking up gambling debts from the unknown Lazarre and has begun a secret relationship with Verna Bernbaum, Leo's girlfriend. This brings on complications when Italian gangster Giovaani Gasparo a.k.a Johnny Casper wants to kill Verna's brother Bernie, who has been skimming off the top with his match fixing rackets. Leo doesn't intend to give him up out of loyalty to Verna, who has asked him to protect her brother for her. Infuriated, Johnny leaves swearing revenge on Leo for "giving him the high hat." Tom then tries to convince Leo to give up Bernie to avoid a full-on gang war that could be easily avoided. Convinced that he still has enough power to handle it, Leo rejects his offer and stubbornly refuses to reconsider. Tom then leaves, but not before Leo offers to pay back his deal with Lazarre. Not wanting to be indebted to Leo, Tom refuses.
Not long after that conversation, Tom wakes up after a long night of drinking and gambling only to realize that he's missing his hat. After asking the barkeep about a bet he placed in a horse race, the barkeep says that it failed and his debt price has gone up. He travels to Verna's place to ask for it back and they end up spending the night. That night, Leo comes over to his apartment and talks to him about his relationship with Verna. Hesitant to tell him of his affair, Tom explains that Leo should give up Bernie in order to maintain his hold on the city. Once again, Leo refuses on the account of his love for Verna. He mentions putting out a bodyguard nicknamed Rug for Verna, who ends up found dead the next morning. Tom visits The Shenadoah Club, where he runs into Mink, a nervous bookie who is in a relationship with Eddie Dane, Casper's main enforcer. During their conversation, Tom hints at a relationship with Bernie as well, causing him to panic. When Tom arrives at Leo's club, he notices that the chief of police and the mayor are there. Deciding to hit some of Casper's businesses, Tom warns him that provoking him would only make things worse. He tries to talk to Verna about controlling Leo's actions, but she declines out of love for her brother. Not long afterwards, Bernie makes an appearance at Tom's apartment and makes a deal to help him with his debts. In return for protecting him from Casper, he'll let him in on one of the fixed fights. Tom says he'll think about it.
Joining Casper's Side[]
After putting in another bet with a different bookie, Tom's brought to one of Johnny's warehouses and offered a check for Lazarre. Johnny agrees to pay the debt back in return for bringing him Bernbaum. As Tom refuses, he has his men Frankie and Tic-Tac come over and beat him up. Just then, the police arrive and escort him out as they bust up Johnny's business. After reassuring the police chief that the situation is under control, Tom returns home to meet up with Verna. Meanwhile, the Italians place a hit on Leo, where he narrowly misses and kills his attackers. Tom returns to Leo's office in an attempt to get him to see sense one last time. When Leo brings up the subject of marriage, Tom hesitantly reveals his affair in a last ditch effort to get through to him. It backfires, leading to Tom getting beaten up by his former boss and thrown out of the club. With Leo severely weakened, Casper makes a move and takes over the mayors office and the police force. When Tom is home, Verna returns and tells him that Leo and her are over now. After spending a night together, Verna reveals where Bernie is hiding out. That same day, Tom pledges allegiances to Casper in return for income to pay back his debt. His first task is to find Bernbaum, which he agrees to by revealing his location.
Failure to kill Bernie and getting blackmailed[]
After finding Bernie and bringing him to Miller's Crossing, Bernie begins crying as he's dragged out of the car. Tic-Tac asks Tom to be the one to do it, shocking him. Not used to killing before, Tom is hesitant as Bernie begins to beg for Tom to "Look in his heart" and spare him. He ends up doing it in return for Bernie leaving town and never coming back. As Tom leaves the woods, the mobsters congratulate him with neither of them the wiser. Back in town, Tom calls Mink and tells him that Bernie's dead. Having deduced that Bernie and Mink were both in on skimming the fix, Tom promises to help him get out of it. Sensing that the Dane is suspicious of Tom, he starts to place an idea in Casper's head that Mink and Dane were both in on the fixed fight. Verna is left in the dark about what happened to Verna, until the Dane enters her apartment and threatens her, revealing that Tom was the one who shot Bernie. She escapes as the Dane kills the guards that Leo sent to protect her. However, things get worse when Bernie returns and blackmails Tom into killing Casper. As Tom tries to get the drop on Bernie, he trips Tom and leaves mocking him for sparing his life.
Playing both Bernie and Casper[]
Tom then pays a visit with the boxer who will be part of the rigged fight. As the police raid Leo's establishment, Tom is taken by the Dane, Frankie and Tic-Tac to Miller's Crossing to see if there was a body. While there, Tom starts to vomit knowing that Bernie is still alive. As the Dane is about to execute him, the gangsters find a dead body. In the clear but not out of the woods, Tom uses Mink's disappearance to further plant the seeds of doubt in Casper's mind, hoping to turn him against the Dane. Tom then calls Bernie, who confirms that Mink is the body inside of the woods. Tom goads Bernie into going to an arranged meeting in order to draw him out. When he goes to Casper's house, the Dane is there with Clarence "Drop" Johnson, the boxer in the upcoming rigged fight that Casper orchestrated. Having followed Tom, he suspects that Tom killed Mink and attempts to strangle him. Torn between Dane and Tom, Casper kills Dane with a coal shovel and shoots him in the head. Tom then tells Casper that Mink is at the same location that Bernie is. When he leaves, he runs into Verna, who reveals that she was told he killed Bernie. Tom reveals that he isn't dead as Verna presses a gun to his head. Failing to pull the trigger, Verna leave and cuts ties from Tom for good.
Having arranged a meeting place for both Casper and Bernie, he makes his way there before Verna holds him at gunpoint and asks him why he killed Bernie. He reveals that Bernie is alive and that he's been trying to protect Leo the whole time. She can't bring herself to shoot him and leaves. When Tom arrives at the meeting place, he hears gunshots over the moving railway car. Entering the building, he see Johnny Casper dead and Bernie laughing insidiously. Bernie and Tom seem to plan to pin it on the Dane and Mink, only for Tom to reveal that the Dane is dead. Realizing that Tom means to kill him, Bernie once again tries to play on his sympathy, only to fall on deaf ears as Tom shoots him in the head. As he sits down in his apartment, he decides to use the money for the fixed fight to pay back his debt, solving all of his problems.
In the end[]
Having paid back his debts and disposed of his enemies, Tom meets up with Leo and Verna at the cemetery for Bernie's funeral. Verna coldly tells him to drop dead as she takes the car. As Leo and Tom discuss recent events, Leo apologizes for his actions and wants Tom to return to his side, telling him he forgives him. Fed up with his bosses carelessness, Tom tells him he doesn't want forgiveness and says goodbye for the last time. As Leo departs sullen, Tom watches him walk away as he leans across a tree.
Quotes[]
| “ | Tom Reagan : Last I heard, Leo was still running this town. O'Doole: Yeah, well, he won't be for long if this keeps up. It's no good for anyone. You said as much yourself... Tom Reagan: First off, O'Doole, I can say what I please to Leo and about him. You can't. Second, once Leo decides, that's that. If that sticks going down, there are plenty of coppers I know who wouldn't mind bein' chief and could swallow it clean. O'Doole: Jesus, Tom, I was just speculatin' about a hypothesis. I know I don't know nothin'. It's just a damn mess, is all. [a flurry of gunshots erupts behind them] O'Doole: A goddamn mess! |
„ |
| ~ Tom and Captain O'Doole discussing Leo and his poor decision-making. |
| “ | Tom Reagan : Think about what protecting Bernie gets us. Think about what offending Caspar loses us. Leo O'Bannion: Oh, come on, Tommy. You know I don't like to think. Tom Reagan: Yeah. Well, think about whether you should start. |
„ |
| ~ Tom trying to convince Leo to not go to war with Casper in vain. |
| “ | Verna : Shouldn't you be doing your job? Tom Reagan : Intimidating helpless women is my job. Verna: Then go find one, and intimidate her. |
„ |
| ~ Tom and Verna. |
| “ | Tom Reagan: It's not Leo's debt. I'll pay me own way. Tad: I admire a man of principle. Does this go on the tab? |
„ |
| ~ Tom Reagan discussing his debt to Lazarre. |
| “ | Tell Leo he's not God on the throne, he's just a cheap political boss with more hair tonic than brains. | „ |
| ~ Tom answering Terry’s threat by criticizing Leo for his decisions. |
| “ | Verna: What're you chewin' over? Tom Reagan: Dream I had once. I was walkin' in the woods, I don't know why. Wind came up and blew me hat off. Verna: And you chased it, right? You ran and ran, finally caught up to it and you picked it up. But it wasn't a hat anymore and it changed into something else, something wonderful. Tom Reagan: Nah, it stayed a hat and no, I didn't chase it. Nothing more foolish than a man chasin' his hat. |
„ |
| ~ Tom discussing his dream with his on/off lover, Verna Bernbaum. |
| “ | Bernie: Look in your heart! Look in your heart! Tom Reagan: What heart? |
„ |
| ~ Tom before he executes Bernie for his blackmailing scheme. |
| “ | Leo O'Bannion: Dammit, Tom, I forgive you! Tom Reagan: I didn't ask for that and I don't want it. Good-bye, Leo. |
„ |
| ~ Tom rejecting Leo's offer to return to his side and his last words. |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- The Coen Brothers did not want Gabriel Byrne to use his original Irish accent, despite him being of Irish decent. That is until Byrne managed to convince them otherwise.
- Reagan toasts Volstead outside Caspar's premises during the police raid. Andrew Volstead was the sponsor and facilitator of the National Prohibition Act in the U.S. Congress, which supported the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and effectively established Prohibition.
- The working title for the film was The Big Head, the Coen's Brother nickname for Tom.