Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 11:32 am
Ryan Reynolds, Ray Liotta, Andy Garcia, Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman, Jeremy Piven, and a bunch of no names star in this ensemble story about a mob hit.
Basically, this story is about a mob boss offering a million dollars for the heart of Buddy Israel (Jeremy Piven). Multiple hitmen and women come in to collect and hilarity ensues. Adding to the chaos is a bail bondsman (Ben Affleck) and the FBI (Ryan Reynolds, Ray Liotta, and Andy Garcia).
Honestly, this story is a mess. I dig what they tried to do, but a lot of the action and plot points are really forced and total bullshit. Not to mention that there is so much going on here and so many characters that the overall story suffers. There isn't an iota of realism, none of the characters have any depth (which is a HUGE problem considering the overall storyline), and the action becomes born out of this being an action film rather than any story driven need.
This is one of those films where you just know the writer is a huge Tarantino fan and he really wanted to make his own Reservoir Dogs, but 1000 times cooler...
The problem is that the film tries to get too cute with its characters and story. The storyline has the "necessary" twist that you'd have to have an IQ of 20 to not see coming from the very SECOND they introduce a certain character early on in the film.
The characters though...we're talking bad writing on a whole new scale. The people who made this film just have no idea how to give their characters any sort of depth or how to connect them to the audience.
So many of these characters are supposed to be really cool and we're supposed to be shocked when something bad happens to them or when a twist with their motivation occurs. You won't be. For example, many people die in the film as you'd expect and you won't give a shit about a single one of them. Hell, the way the film ends will leave you asking, "Why'd he do that, and why am I supposed to give a shit?"
The characters might have been helped a bit if the director had spent some time focusing on them. One group of hitmen, for example, get 5-10 minutes total of on screen time and they're major players in this film. In contrast, the head of security for a hotel, a total non-role, gets just as much time in a boring, pointless scene that has no bearing on the story.
Smoking Aces wants to be Reservoir Dogs, The Usual Suspects, and every other "cool" movie ever made. Unfortunately, despite having a great cast who actually work hard, the storyline and direction are abysmal proving making Reservoir Dogs isn't just about getting a camera and some good actors. There has to be a well told story present or the audience just won't care.
Don't even bother renting it.
3 out of 10.
Basically, this story is about a mob boss offering a million dollars for the heart of Buddy Israel (Jeremy Piven). Multiple hitmen and women come in to collect and hilarity ensues. Adding to the chaos is a bail bondsman (Ben Affleck) and the FBI (Ryan Reynolds, Ray Liotta, and Andy Garcia).
Honestly, this story is a mess. I dig what they tried to do, but a lot of the action and plot points are really forced and total bullshit. Not to mention that there is so much going on here and so many characters that the overall story suffers. There isn't an iota of realism, none of the characters have any depth (which is a HUGE problem considering the overall storyline), and the action becomes born out of this being an action film rather than any story driven need.
This is one of those films where you just know the writer is a huge Tarantino fan and he really wanted to make his own Reservoir Dogs, but 1000 times cooler...
The problem is that the film tries to get too cute with its characters and story. The storyline has the "necessary" twist that you'd have to have an IQ of 20 to not see coming from the very SECOND they introduce a certain character early on in the film.
The characters though...we're talking bad writing on a whole new scale. The people who made this film just have no idea how to give their characters any sort of depth or how to connect them to the audience.
So many of these characters are supposed to be really cool and we're supposed to be shocked when something bad happens to them or when a twist with their motivation occurs. You won't be. For example, many people die in the film as you'd expect and you won't give a shit about a single one of them. Hell, the way the film ends will leave you asking, "Why'd he do that, and why am I supposed to give a shit?"
The characters might have been helped a bit if the director had spent some time focusing on them. One group of hitmen, for example, get 5-10 minutes total of on screen time and they're major players in this film. In contrast, the head of security for a hotel, a total non-role, gets just as much time in a boring, pointless scene that has no bearing on the story.
Smoking Aces wants to be Reservoir Dogs, The Usual Suspects, and every other "cool" movie ever made. Unfortunately, despite having a great cast who actually work hard, the storyline and direction are abysmal proving making Reservoir Dogs isn't just about getting a camera and some good actors. There has to be a well told story present or the audience just won't care.
Don't even bother renting it.
3 out of 10.