Review of The Family (2013) by Matt G — 02 Nov 2013

Director Luc Besson has a history of mixing great style, strong characters, and bright violence, most notably in his cult classic, "Leon the Professional". It would seem that a gangster comedy that is essentially shooting to be a funny "Goodfellas" could be right down his alley. And while Besson presents some of his signature flair for stylish editing, and there are decent performances within, the comparisons to "Goodfellas" and "Leon" end there. Unfortunately, "The Family" is an ugly, unfunny, dull mess.

The film follows an American mob family who are relocated to France under the witness protection program and are doing their darndest to blend in. As expected, old habits die hard and they soon fall into their old ways (espionage, beatings, murder...you know, the usual). This is where most of the movie resides, asking us to laugh at this despicable family doing despicable things. This is a formula that can work ("Ocean's Eleven", the TV show "Arrested Development"), but characters must be sympathetic, charming, or likeable in some way, and in "The Family", they simply aren't.

The movie is not completely devoid of merit. There are some unique elements to the cat-and-mouse scenes with the villains, there are some killer editing choices (i.e. the way the movie fades to credits at the end), and De Niro has an absolutely righteous beard. But the tonal inconsistencies and weak script make it impossible to completely support. If you wanna go to the theatre, see "Blue Jasmine" or "The Conjuring".