MADE
Clever indie comedy with dark undertones about incompetent young mobsters.
Running time: 95 minutes. Rated R (language, mild violence). At the Union Square.
THE wonderful 1996 comedy “Swingers” launched the careers of young stars Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau, who also wrote the screenplay. They are together and in their best form again in “Made,” a film written and also directed by Favreau.
It lacks the visual virtuosity and breathless pacing director Doug Liman brought to “Swingers.” But the Vaughn-Favreau chemistry still flares and Favreau’s fine ear for comic dialogue hasn’t dulled.
The duo play hapless would-be mobsters, and the film offers a surprisingly fresh and unpredictable trip through Mafia territory.
Bobby (Favreau) is a rather bad amateur boxer who also works as a mason and as a driver for his exotic dancer girlfriend, Jessica (Famke Janssen).
All of these gigs he gets through old-time mob boss Max (Peter Falk). And whenever Bobby can, he tries to get work for his big-mouthed best friend, Ricky (Vaughn).
Ricky is lazy, difficult and dishonest – and, worse, has a thoroughly deluded sense of his own sophistication that repeatedly gets them both into trouble.
Max offers Bobby a chance to join the organization if he and Ricky can pull off a mysterious mission that involves flying to New York and making contact with Max’s associate Ruiz (Sean Combs).
Bobby is thrilled at the opportunity because he’s desperate to get Jessica (who has a 6-year-old daughter) out of stripping.
But for Ricky, it’s all about the first-class tickets to New York and the organization limo driven by Jimmy (Vincent Pastore from “The Sopranos”). And within minutes of meeting scary Ruiz and his own not terriby competent deputy, Horrace (Faison Love), Ricky comes close to screwing up the mission.
“Made” moves along a little sluggishly at times and it takes a surprisingly serious, even touching turn toward the end. But it’s often hilarious, and there is lots of the zippy, apparently improvised dialogue that made “Swingers” such a pleasure.
Unsurprisingly, Favreau has a knack for inspiring excellent performances. Falk is a particular pleasure and Favreau is very good, but it’s Vaughn who pulls off something really remarkable: His character is stupid, selfish and generally obnoxious – yet somehow sympathetic.
It’s too soon to tell if rapper/producer Combs will turn out to have big screen-acting chops like the late Tupac Shakur, but he certainly has presence to spare as the exasperated gangster Ruiz.