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Photo courtesy of New Line Cinema
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Andrew Davoli, Seth Green, Barry Pepper and Vin Diesel are among the testosterone-heavy cast of "Knockaround Guys." The film opens this weekend.
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By Mark Betancourt
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Thursday October 10, 2002
For some reason, even though it was completed in 1999, "Knockaround Guys" is only just now hitting theaters. Maybe the distributors were worried you won't like it. It doesn't fit your average mold for mafia-related tragi-comedy. That's because it doesn't suck.
Matty Demaret (Barry Pepper) is the son of a big New York mafia boss. When he was twelve, his uncle Teddy (John Malkovich) took him to a basement and told him to shoot a man tied to a chair.
"It's okay," Teddy says, taking the unfired gun from Matty's hands. "You're not cut out for this, we know that now."
Intriguing.
Some years later, after Matty's last failed interview at a sports agency, Teddy is still telling him he's not cut out for mob work. But Matty wants in, tired of getting shut out of the clean life on account of his father's name.
So his dad (Dennis Hopper) lets him and his friends take on one little job.
Matty sends his friend Marbles (Seth Green) to pick up some of his father's money, and on the way back Marbles loses the bag. In Wibaux, Mont.
Matty shows up to fix things with smooth-talking Scarpa (Andrew Davoli) and Taylor, who by virtue of the fact that he's played by Vin Diesel must be the brawn.
Trouble ensues.
It's an interesting mix of trouble, though. At first the film seems almost comedic (the money is pilfered by two pot-headed prairie teens who spend it on beef jerky), but shows signs of serious drama as the story unfolds. More than once Matty and Taylor sit side by side and talk about things.
The bag changes hands, and the story takes a turn for the worse. Later, it takes a turn for the much worse.
What's interesting about this film is, by all accounts, it should suck. It should be just another gangster movie, just another chance to glorify violence. After all, there are beatings and shootings and guys in sleek leather jackets angling like archangels through bars.
The difference is this: The writers tried. That's right. They thought, "Hey, we have a decent story here. Let's try to make it a good one." And they gave it the old college try.
This is not the story of a guy and his friends being tough and prevailing for our entertainment. Instead, we see Matty facing a life he really isn't cut out for, not because he isn't tough, but because he isn't capable of mustering the back-stabbing, utterly self-centered will of a gangster. Not that bad.
Of course, it isn't that great either. For the most part, the film looks exactly like every other drama to come out recently. The acting is decent but not stunning, except for John Malkovich who would act like a freak even if you cast him as a bunny in a children's film.
But the script is an admirable attempt at fiction, and it makes the movie worth watching. What a concept.
