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Welcome To CollinwoodDir: Anthony & Joe Russo Rating: M Running Time: 86 minutes Magna Pacific 'Welcome To Collinwood' is independent film makers Anthony & Joe Russo's remake of the classic Italian heist caper 'I Souti Ignoti', and unlike other slick remakes of classic heist movies released in recent years ('The Italian Job' and 'Oceans Eleven'), '...Collinwood' opts for a small scale, bleak backdrops and the slapstick style humour of the original, yet adding a few original touches including moving the setting of the film to Collinwood, one of the poorest neighbourhoods in Cleveland, Ohio. The result is a gritty yet great-looking film featuring stellar performances from a full cast of talented actors who manage to balance the human drama of their characters with the physical humour required to make the film succeed as a comedy. The story begins with small-time thief Cosimo (Luiz Guzman). In prison for his latest burglary bungle, he overhears a lifer's fool-proof plan for a bellini (or perfect job). Cosimo's girlfriend (Patricia Clarkson) then has to find someone to take the fall in order to get him released, only the plan backfires and Cosimo's plan falls into the hands of manic wannabe-boxer Pero (Sam Rockwell). Desperate for a break and lured by the prospect of a shot at a real bellini, a bunch of penniless criminals and other luckless individuals gathers around Pero, and what follows is a hilarious caper as the incompetent team try to rob a pawnbroker's safe, hounded by an escaped Cosimo hell-bent on revenge. 'Welcome To Collinwood' is one of the best heist films I have seen in some time, and also one of the best comedies of recent years. The humour works because the Russo brothers avoid trying to gag up the dialogue, instead focusing on performances from actors that know a thing or two about timing in physical comedy, including George Clooney (who also co produced the film, along with Steven Soderbergh) as a wheelchair-bound ex-safe cracker. The DVD's extra features are perhaps lacking, with some rather banal interviews and a lacklustre reel of behind the scenes footage. The pan-back shots of the cast and crew going through key scenes again and again perhaps gives a better idea about life on a movie set than any slick, narrated documentary could, but the numerous slow takes distract from the pace of the scenes in the film, and it soon becomes tiresome. When it comes to DVD releases of good films however, I've learnt to cut my losses as far as bonus material goes. Often atrocious movies have oodles of entertaining extras, and although these extras may be dull, at least I can console myself that the movie's a real treat and worth the price of purchase alone. Fans of cool heist movies should not miss this. |
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