Knockaround Guys (2002)

Very Good Movie Excellent Performances

Knockaround Guys is the story of four friends who are related to and associates of real mob guys. In the course of trying to prove their worth to the "knockaround guys i.e. the mob they mess up a money pickup. This puts the mob father and uncle of Matty (one of the young guys) in a cross with the big boss. Now everyone is trying to get the money: the mob, the young men trying to prove themselves, corrupt small town sheriffs, and some inane skateboard stoners.
The story is an interesting study of relationships corrupted by greed and stupidity. But it is more interesting for the juxtiposition of genuine friendship/loyalty as measured against the often bogus devotion of blood family ties and business associations. The performances are uniformly terrific-even the lesser roles. However Vin Diesel really stands out as the intelligent strong arm who believes he is out of options for himself but offers to let Matty avoid the showdown which promises to be lethal. He owns every scene in which he appears, not just because of his physical presence but because of his quiet intensity. You can believe that this is more than a talented actor reciting lines.
If you prefer highly intellectual movies this will not be your cup of tea. However, people who believe that loyalty, friendship, and courage actually exist apart from the "situational" morality/cowardice that threaten to rot out society will appreciate the film. March 2, 2008

A sleeper that may surprise

A very good cast and everyone carried their weight in this film. I thought the plot was very good and Barry Pepper along with Vin Diesel were very believable in their roles.

I think this is one of the sleeper films that deserves a look. Plenty of action and one of the best and most realistic fight scenes involving Vin against the local tough guy. January 14, 2008

Cute Actors, but HORRIBLE MOVIE!!

The actors in the movie are really cute, but it's not worth the torture of sitting through an hour and a half of bad plots and even worse lines. I never knew a movie could be this bad and still attract "big-name" actors. The only plus (other than the actors) is that it's a great movie to MAKE FUN of...I've never seen this bad of a representation of the Mafia!! January 2, 2008

Surprisingly good film

Delayed for a few years, but who can tell why? Pretty strong film, Diesel is okay but Seth Green really shines here. Worth a look, certainly. January 10, 2007

Not all that bad

The story is pretty simple. The son of a wiseguy trusted his friend to bring like 500.000 $ back from somewhere. But his friend, who was flying the plane got a little high on coke and got a little paranoid, so he placed the bag with the money somewhere while he had his plane refueled. Sadly the bag got on another plane by mistake and well.. He and his friends go to the Town the plane went to. I mean it has interesting characters played by great actors like Dennis Hopper, John Malkovich, Vin Diesel and finally Seth Green. The movie consists of a lot of profanity, a bit of drug use, a little bit of violence. (something for everyone).. Well and it's just light entertainment. You can't expect too much of this movie. The main problem is that the movie itself isn't sure what it wants to be. I mean, is it a comedy or a thriller or what? My final thought: Even though it's produced by Lawrence Bender (Tarantinos Producer), it is NOT a movie that inherits the qualities of most of his other producing ventures. But it is still watchable and a nice avocation
so lets say 3/5 August 12, 2006

More reviews at Amazon.com ...