An American mom, Kristen (Toni Collette) inherits her grandfather's, Don Giuseppe Balbano (Alessandro Bressanello) mafia empire in Italy. Guided by the firm's consigliere, Bianca (Monica Bellucci), she hilariously defies everyone's expectations, including her second cousin Fabrizio Balbano (Eduardo Scarpetta), as the new head of the family business. As bullets are flying, it is simply amazing how a typical American mom (who's never seen "The Godfather") can quickly learn the ropes of how to be a boss, whether by stumbling or by chance, when your very life depends on it.
Others to round out the cast are Giulio Corso as Lorenzo, Alphonso Perugini as Dante, Francesco Mastroianni as Aldo, Sofia Nomvete as Jenny, Tim Dalsh as Paul, Tommy Rodger as Domenick, Jay Natelle as Hank, Yonv Joseph as Randy and Mitch Salm as Wayne.
This was effectively directed by Catherine Hardwicke ("Thirteen" '03, "Lords of Dogtown" '05, "The Nativity Story" '06, "Twilight" '08, "Red Riding Hood" '11, "Plush" '13, "Miss You Already" '15, "Miss Bala" '19, "The Lost Boys" (TV movie) '19, "Don't Look Deeper" '20, "Prisoner's Daughter" '22, "Tell It Like a Woman" '22) plus TV, shorts and a music video. By her very resume, this filmmaker is a seasoned director and this film showcases this. The emotions she was able to extract from her actors was over-the-top, but certainly subtle when the scene called for it, and this is the mark of a honed comedy. It was written by virtual newcomers to feature films, J. Michael Feldman (TV and a short) and Debbie Jhoon (TV and a short), based on an original story by Amanda Sthers. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Hollywood simply needs to pay extra for more seasoned writers, because then they will get back more on their investment. Don't get me wrong, this isn't a terrible film--not at all, but it isn't a great film either. First of all, it's written with a predictable plot; secondly, it has some issues with cohesiveness and continuity, but, at the end of the day, I left the theater realizing that it was better than I thought. It could've been a bit more funny, although it definitely was comedic, but a few good belly laughs would've been more effective. These writers certainly have a future in the feature film screenwriting biz--they just need more work thrown their way.
Certainly if you like mafia themed films and/or comedies that have that same topic, this film will please. I personally like Toni Collette--she gives such depth and feeling to every role she does and she's played some very interesting characters. This film just needed a bit more polish and it would've come off funnier and more entertaining.
Out of 4 Stars: 2.5 Rated: R 101mins.
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