Review: Criminal

Con man John C. Reilly sees younger, small-time schemer Diego Luna about to get into deep shit with a two-bit casino scam, and decides to help the kid evade trouble. He then offers him a gig as his accomplice, and eventually they get involved in a huge scam to rip-off rich Scottish-accented businessman Peter Mullan. Maggie Gyllenhaal plays Reilly’s embittered sister, who may or may not have valid reasons for her disposition (They are currently suing each other over parental inheritance money). Jonathan Tucker plays Reilly’s younger brother, who works at a hotel with Gyllenhaal, and seems to idolise his big brother.

 

This 2004 Americanised remake of the Argentine “Nine Queens” from director Gregory Jacobs (whose only other directorial assignment to date was the OK 2007 thriller “Wind Chill”) and his co-writer Sam Lowry (who is really filmmaker Steven Soderbergh using a pseudonym because he’s pretentious) is neither original nor a great film. It is, however, a genre that I enjoy, and this is a respectable entry in it. It’s far better than any of Soderbergh’s own tedious caper films).

 

John C. Reilly isn’t the first person I’d cast as a con-man, but he’s still very good and I can see why he was cast here. His character is not a nice man, and has many, many flaws. He becomes a worse human being the more we learn about him. Casting the likeable, every man-ish Reilly helps smooth over some of those flaws with the audience so that he’s not insufferable to be around. I still would’ve preferred a more handsome, outwardly slick (but still untrustworthy enough that he’d need a fresh-faced accomplice) actor for the role. Edward Norton or Ed Burns, perhaps, Colin Farrell would’ve been ideal. But Reilly’s fine, and has some lovely, cynical dialogue, especially early on. I wish the film did more with Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Mullan, as both actors are very good with what they are given. Mullan is especially strong as a heavy. Nice, intense cameo by Michael Shannon (as an accomplice), who also would’ve been nice to spend more time with.

 

The plot is really interesting in how it constantly keeps on surprising you and keeping you guessing for its entirety, despite not re-inventing the wheel. The constant problems thrown in Reilly’s way are amusing and interesting. Boring title aside, this one’s a pretty enjoyable genre entry, with interesting actors, and although I’m not sure it 100% checks out, the twist ending sure is a doozy that I didn’t remotely predict in advance.

 

Worth a look, unless you’ve seen the original (and won’t find any of this fresh or surprising), or if you’re the type of snooty twit who thumbs their nose at the very idea of an Americanised remake in and of itself, and can’t spot an enjoyable caper in its own right, whether it’s a remake or not.

 

Rating: B-