Frank Ochieng is a guest critic who also writes reviews for his own personal website, located here.

To become a Guest Critic for CINEMA 2000, please notify David Keyes.

Review Uploaded
10/21/02

Starring: Barry Pepper, Vin Diesel, Seth Green, Andrew Davoli, Dennis Hopper, John Malkovich

Directed by: Brian Koppelman and David Levien

The filmmakers should have called this joyless kinetic mob flick Knockoff Guys instead of its current given title. In co-director/co-writer Brian Koppelman and David Levien’s flashy yet strained gangster caper Knockaround Guys, the tandem try desperately to “knock off” a variation of the hipster swagger so commonly identified with Quentin Taratino-esque cinema. The directing duo fail to realize that their attempt to helm a mediocre makeover Reservoir Dogs coupled with the sardonic darkness of HBO’s mob drama The Sopranos is an undertaking that falls relentlessly flat. Knockaround Guys is basically empty-minded static in its ability to create any tension regarding a group of posturing Palookas and their grating Godfather complex. The sad thing about Knockaround Guys is its lame aspiration for grasping the coolness vibes when in fact the film isn’t as flippant or slick as it thinks it is. Whether taking advantage of hot commodity Vin Diesel’s casting in the movie thanks to the inevitable success of the action hero’s summertime kinetic spy thriller xXx or capitalizing on the trendy dosage of bloodshed courtesy of its glorious gunplay gumption, Knockaround Guys has all the intrigue and angst of a corrupt boy scout nervously playing with matches.

This callow and cocky crime drama may satisfy the element out there that cherish monosyllabic lunkheads and their dastardly dance partner known as mayhem. Yet you would think those who hold Knockaround Guys in such high regard would want this tough-as-nails yarn to engage in something more challenging and unconventional. Instead, the movie insists on revisiting the typical clichés that dictate the predictable proceedings that are rather obvious in this mob flick genre. No doubt the youngish studs featured in this flip crime drama will draw the giddy youthful masses. But for the most part, there’s a transparency that’s so evident in a movie trying to cop a stylish attitude.

The film focuses on Matty Demaret (Barry Pepper), a disillusioned Brooklyn-based kid trying to measure up to the approval of his hard-nosed and indifferent mob boss father Benny Chains (Dennis Hopper). Apparently good ol’ daddy dearest thinks that Matty is as solid as a chewy marshmallow; the kid simply cannot please his old man or himself for that matter. In fact, Matty has even tried to go the honest route by seeking out a sports agent’s job but eventually gets turned down when the powers-that-be find out of his chaotic background. Thus, Matty is forced to contend with his only destiny—the life of crime that his family knows all too well.

In the meantime, Matty prepares for his goal to win over his daddy’s approval by gathering up a collection of hotheaded punks. The motley crew is sons of seemingly powerful patriarchs that are big-time mobster masterminds. Hence, these young strong-arm thugs also have something to prove just like ringleader Matty. The criminal-oriented cads consist of balding brutish badboy Taylor Reese (Diesel), Johnny Marbles (Seth Green) and Chris Scarpa (Andrew Davoli). Together this band of menacing misfits, along with crooked mentor Teddy Deserve (John Malkovich), form a unit that’s solid and worthy of respect within the realm of their bloody universe.

When the clumsy Marbles leaves the mob’s suitcase full of money in a small dusty Midwest town, the gang find themselves on a field trip to retrieve the misplaced fortune. Once they get to their Montana destination, the gutsy group get involved by tangling with the giddy locals. Soon there are all sorts of excitable showdowns between the fractions. In fact, Matty and the gang also have continuous confrontations with the rogue sheriff (Tom Noonan). Of course the entanglements that the anti-heroes face serve as a wake up call to prove their stripes. Hence, we’re reminded that Matty and his cohorts were made men all along and that it took a series of confrontational adventures to make them realize their self-importance.

Koppelman and Levien have collaborated before (screenplay only) on another naughty boys-will-be-boys 1998 drama called Rounders. In this film, the twosome was effective in bringing us a close up in the erratic behavior patterns of the lead characters. Also, the pair provided an insightful spin on the subject matter of gambling and its hypnotic hold. However, the tag team moviemakers fail to give Knockaround Guys any noteworthy distinction to its one-dimensional characterizations or the staid storyline that delves into the familiar confines of a mundane mobster thriller that possesses a sensationalistic bark but no hearty bite.

The performances have that raucous attention-getting “wink wink” show-offy feel to it. The actors do nothing more than prance around and mug for the camera as the rollicking festivities aimlessly pop every which way but loose. The tired father-son conflict angle is hopelessly unoriginal and doesn’t stimulate this frenzied fable one bit. The tension in this movie never generates anything of interest that would cause this dud to go beyond its perfunctory impact.

Overall, this pared down Goodfellas wannabe for the younger moviegoers is ridiculously derivative and doesn’t really know what it wants to achieve. Is it an unintentional comedy or irreverent drama? Quite frankly, who knows and who really cares? Knockaround Guys does more unnecessary flexing than a Vin Diesel bicep. But still, this movie’s muscle is nothing more than a willing target for a series of unavoidable cramps.

Frank rates this film: ** stars (out of 4 stars)