Jon Favreau in "Made."

MOVIE INFORMATION

With 10 as a must-see, Jack gives this film a: Stars: Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn Director: Jon Favreau Rated: R, with profanity, drugs and sex Length: 96 minutes

ROCHESTERCRITIQUE

Having seen this film, how would you rate it? 10 5 9 4 8 3 7 2 6 1

By Jack Garner
Democrat and Chronicle

(August 17, 2001) -- Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn -- those Swingers buddies -- are back together in the lightweight gangster comedy Made.

In the tradition of The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight, they play two Los Angeles nitwits with mob ambitions.

They find themselves in way over their heads when a gangland fixer (Peter Falk) gives them a job. Neither guy has enough intelligence to duck a punch -- which probably explains why they stumble through the film, covered in bumps and bruises.

Favreau is Bobby, the more good-natured of the two; he wants to do the right thing, he just doesn't know what that is. He squeezes out a living as a club boxer and construction worker. He's also a driver-bodyguard for his wife, Jessica (Famke Janssen), a stripper who works private parties. That gig isn't good for his blood pressure, though. As soon as a drunken partygoer puts his hands on Jessica, Bobby goes ballistic.

Vaughn is Ricky, a cocky, dumb-as-a-stump ne'er-do-well who lives only for the moment and sorely tries his best friend's patience. Ricky exists solely on Bobby's good graces -- as his club boxing partner or pushing a broom on a construction site.

Ricky is so obnoxious, it's a toss-up whether you'll be irritated or amused. Eventually his character is very amusing, but he's an acquired taste.

The friendship is tested when they're finally given a mob assignment: They're to fly to Manhattan and deliver some vague package to a middle-management hoodlum, played with amusing flair by Sean "P. Diddy" Combs.

Their actual assignment is never clear, but it doesn't matter. It's just an excuse to throw these two silly L.A. fish out of water into the Manhattan crime milieu.

The result is a mildly entertaining gangland buddy picture, boosted by an amusing finale. However, it offers little of the freshness or rich characterizations of Swingers, the film that made both men's reputations.

Favreau, who wrote Swingers, adds directing to his credentials for the first time. Working in a improvisational, on-the-run style with noted cinematographer Christopher Doyle, Favreau gives Made a hit-and-miss, loosey-goosey flavor.