So much average

Fresh and Exciting

Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

A movie that does not live up to it's title and is not the worst thing ever. It features Denis Leary as well, Denis Leary. It's a long shot, but this might be the last of the stream of inferior Tarantino rip-offs, only with virtually no cunning dialogues and not that much crime. The shifts between stories that meet at the end is a bit like "Pulp Fiction" but then again, the execution is too poor to really compare the two. Also featured is Elizabeth Hurley (who can't really act but no problem) as a chiropractor who joins Leary in a needlessly complicated love story. It's like, somewhere in the middle Leary remembers grieving about his wife. Steve Buscemi is in this, but he's in everything so I don't even need to mention that. Still, one can only wonder what made him appear this time, I mean he's like, Leary's sidekick, occasionally, he has about three lines. About the plot, the janitor of a cop's building gets himself nearly killed, and his daughter has something to with it (major early killing of subplot,what did Chick do in the end? Obviously he couldn't just let it slide). An unfunny subplot revolves about two movie writers including, and I wish this was a joke, a Cuba Gooding Jr. rip-off. The other one is the typical guy in the video store who really doesn't know anything about movies not featuring stoned people. Not the highlight of cinema, and barely amusing(the few good comments come from the underused Buscemi), but fairly enjoyable.

This movie was on our cable on demand and I never seen it , so I thought I'd check it out. I have a bad back and I can relate to this character Detective Pluto. When your back is out no one knows the pain and difficulty but yourself. Additionally, it always seems other people less cooler than yourself are getting ahead while your in pain. It's a funny movie and I like Denis Leary's style in it. We need more people like this guy, as the world sadly turns to wussies. I like the plot, they made the two thieves kind of ruthless though and I don't see them being as ruthlessly portrayed unless some drug use was indicated in the film (none were). Anyway enjoy the laughs.

Two of the most respected, famous, talented individuals in movie history - Jack Nicholson and the late Peter Sellers - have and had off-screen relationships, both professional and personal, at complete odds with their on-screen personas. In terms of his primary professional career - as a comedian - Denis Leary has a persona which can be described as harsh, earthy, laced with profanity, and with characteristics which often are vulgar. He's also very funny, but even those of us not averse to comedy with very adult language and demeanor can find some of his stuff off-putting on occasion. But on-screen, while he also presents some rough edges, in this film (as in "The Ref") he is likable, and is a also a competent actor (if not yet a "Sellers" or "Nicholson") who provides an engaging performance. In "The Ref," the splendid supporting performances by Kevin Spacey and Judy Davis, his neurotic hostages and later allies - along with the rest of the excellent cast - added to the film's enjoyment. In "Double Whammy" the beautiful and talented Elizabeth Hurley (Hugh Grant should have his head examined) and the other, supporting cast members, many recognizable for other capable performances, add to this film's enjoyment, as well.But, back to comparison with Sellers and Nicholson, Leary is a man who in real life had been married to the same woman for nearly 25 years, half his entire life, who has significant charitable activity, who taught English (IN COLLEGE), and is as stable as these two were not - in reality. We certainly can enjoy performances which don't reflect actors' personal/real lives (if this weren't so, movies and other entertainment media might die-out) - but it's interesting to recognize the virtues of someone like Leary, especially since, ironically, I've encountered people who eschew his movies because the don't care for his on-stage comedy persona. In this film, albeit's not being "The Maltese Falcon" or "Basic Instinct," and Leary not yet another Bogart or Michael Douglas, it still is well-cast, well-acted, and provides a competent mix of humor, action, romance, some surprises/plot twists, and drama, to provide an enjoyable hour-and-a-half spent, and rates a solid 8* (possibly even higher).

As Icarus flew too close to the sun, this film treads a tad too near the cliches that it wants to mock. Stretched between a love story, a cop buddy pic and a comedy...we wind up with less than a third of a whammy.But that third is alright. Leary remains very watchable, like a match under a magnifying glass...I can only hope there is a DVD wherein he gets to flambe the weaker elements of this production. Or maybe he just did the film as a chance for some body heat with Bessy Hurley. One of the funniest moments in the film for me was her as the sorrowful, stood-up woman. That still cracks me up...As did some other legitimate aspects of the film...imagine the audacity of a child killer as a hero...and it actually is kinda funny. Buscemi has a few moaning moments, especially his line about a "bucket of crack." Luis Guzman plays Luis Guzman better than anybody going...for a guy who works in such broad caricatures, he always manages to bring out a nuance or two. The highlight however was the use of the Tarateenagers drawing up their Cannes-destined screenplay, in particular I thought Donald Faison was way too good for this sort of movie.In the end this film is cobbled together from too many films cobbled together from too many other films. But for a Monday night veg, it was okay for me... It was one of the few HBO films I could get through these days. Do they have to make their home-cooking look so good by running it up against so much dreck? Or does one hour of "Six Feet Under" or Tony Soprano end up costing me 167 hours of straight-to-video...plus the occasional blockbuster that I already saw on the big screen or more likely skipped because it was too $tupid.Speaking of Tony Soprano, this film had a hit in it that just plain misses. On the plus side it also had a dream sequence, in fact I wish the time spent in the dream sequence went on, for I don't know, 2/3 of the movie.I'm sure glad I didn't know that the force behind this was the same guy who brought us "Living in Oblivion" and "Box of Moonlight" that would have made it even more disappointing. Relegating it from a Monday night veg to a post-car-accident watch and forget your life blur if you can.Worth a note or two is the soundtrack using NYC notable note-benders like "Lazy Boy" and Marc Ribot. Ultimately it was Susan Shopmaker who stole this show...4/10