Life of Crime

Checked "Life of Crime" in Amsterdam and loved it, as did most of the audience... Unlike many of the reviewers here, who may have gone in expecting something different.

Starring Jennifer Aniston, Mos Def and Tim Robbins, "Life of Crime" is NOT a romantic comedy or straight crime story. Rather, it is an Elmore Leonard-derived caper tale set in the late 70s, with the soundtrack and mustaches to match. Staying true to the author's ethos, the dialog is smart, the jokes are hilarious in quite subtle ways, and the storyline gently bends until the protagonists end up in an entirely different place than they were planning to.

Actors usually love doing Leonard scripts - he prefers to let mouths do the talking, not fists - and the cast pretty much nails it here. I loved Mos Def, Isla Fisher and Robbins in particular, but it is Aniston who steals the show. All those years post-Rachel, her comedic timing is still impeccable, and she still has the capacity to get you to care for her, even when cast as a hopeless housewife.

The verdict: I thought "Life of Crime" was just as enjoyable as other recent Elmore Leonard adaptations (that had way bigger budgets and box office mojo): Tarantino's "Jackie Brown" and Soderbergh's "Out of Sight", and would recommend "Life of Crime" especially to people who loved the latter.

I enjoyed this film a lot. It's not ground breaking or stylish or full of violence. It's nice and easy with funny characters and some laugh out loud moments. A we'll put together, charming film.

The summary of this described it as a comedy. I didn't find it funny.

"Life of Crime" from 2013 is based on an Elmore Leonard story, "The Switch," which has some of the same characters as "Jackie Brown." Sadly this is not in Jackie Brown's league. I'll give it this - it has a great soundtrack.

Jennifer Aniston stars as Mickey, married to a prize jerk, Frank (Tim Robbins), who is involved in shady real estate deals and tax evasion. Unbeknownst to her, he's channeling money to a secret bank account, and his trips include meeting up with a young girlfriend Melanie (Isla Fisher). He also plans on divorcing Mickey and marrying Melanie.

Louis (John Hawkes) and Ordell (Mos Def) have the idea of kidnapping Mickey and holding her for a million dollars ransom. They figure they know too much about his illegal activities for him to refuse.

It turns out that the only one with any brains is Melanie. When Frank gets the phone call about Mickey, Melanie takes over. She starts taking the phone calls, claiming Frank isn't around. It finally occurs to the kidnappers that Frank doesn't really want Mickey back.

There are two other men in the plot who are potentially trouble, but in different ways. There is the neo-Nazi racist with more guns than the Army (Mark Boone Junior) and a guy (Will Forte) who bonds with Mickey.

This just didn't hang together for me. It certainly isn't up to the standard of Elmore Leonard as filmed by Tarantino. I think the filmmakers were going for a Tarantino/Cohen Brothers type of movie, but they didn't pull it off.

"Life of Crime" has good ensemble acting and some funny dialogue, but its pace is off, and it has a low-budget feel to it. It also lacks the layers of films like "Fargo" or "Jackie Brown."

I've never been a fan of Jennifer Aniston's, and this didn't move her up on my list. I consider her just okay. When I think of female stars who can carry a film, she isn't one.

"We need to find a way o put him against the wall." Frank Dawson (Robbins) is a businessman with many enemies. When a group of men are looking for revenge on him they decide to take what is most important to him, his wife Mickey (Aniston). They kidnap her and demand a ransom from him. The only downside is that he was going to divorce her and is with his mistress when they call so he's not all that concerned. This puts strain on the kidnappers when plans have to change. This is another movie based off an Elmore Leonard book. If you have seen the other movies from his books (Jackie Brown, 3:10 To Yuma, Get Shorty and most recently Justified) you will know what to expect. The feel of all of them are pretty much alike. This one does have more of a Get Shorty feel to it in the way that it is a very dark comedy and you aren't sure who to root for. The acting is very good and the movie keeps you interested and entertained but I never really got all that into it. I did like all the twists and the events of this but there was just something missing to make me really like it. I also wasn't a big fan of Get Shorty so if you liked that movie you will probably enjoy this much more then I did. Overall, a movie that I thought was OK and worth watching but nothing that really made me think wow, this is good. I give it a B-.

A loose prequel of sorts for the criminal players of Jackie Brown, based on Elmore Leonard's novel The Switch. It's not Jackie, no two ways about it, and it's unfair to compare the two... unfair, but inevitable since they're so spiritually related. The stakes are much lower this time, with a simple kidnapping plot the main point of action and few of the deliciously tangled interwoven story lines of the Tarantino flick. In Leonard's hands that still made for a wildly entertaining read, but on the screen it feels a bit on the shallow side. This translation is missing the charm and finesse of its source material, too, and a little of that spice can really go a long way. John Hawkes manages a really convincing, greasy De Niro impression as the soft-hearted enforcer Louis, while Mos Def's take on mastermind Ordell Robbie (originally played by Samuel L. Jackson) is less indebted to his predecessor. Jennifer Aniston is good as the repressed trophy wife / tennis mom / kidnappee, but the rest of the cast just seems like they're wearing costumes and playing games. They take themselves lightly, so it's tough for me to see the situation as all that serious. It's fine, superficial at worst, but there's little wonder why it slipped under the radar without a whimper when it hit the screens a couple of years ago.