KNOCKAROUND GUYS —* 1/2 — Barry Pepper, Vin Diesel, Seth Green, Andrew Davoli, John Malkovich, Tom Noonan, Dennis Hopper; rated R (profanity, violence, drug use, vulgarity, gore, ethnic slurs); see the "On the Screen" column for complete listing of local theaters.
The biggest question posed by "Knockaround Guys" is not "Who are they?" but "Who in their right mind would want to see a movie about them?"
The answer, at least after seeing the film, is obvious — not very many people. After all, the studio that released "Knockaround Guys" — New Line Cinema — did so only after nearly two years of delays.
As to why the studio finally deemed it worthy of release, that too is obvious — to cash in on the continuing popularity of pay-cable's "The Sopranos," as well as the rise in popularity of one of its cast members, Vin Diesel.
But even he doesn't seem too interested in this cliche-filled gangster drama, which basically rehashes last year's "Made," but with much less humor (or at least intentional humor). Instead, the film is a surprisingly dour piece about four would-be tough guys from Brooklyn (Barry Pepper, Seth Green, Andrew Davoli and Diesel) who run into trouble in the Rockies.
They're supposed to be picking up a cash "package" from Spokane, Wash., to transport it home, but drug-addled pilot Johnny Marbles (Green) gets spooked and leaves it in an airport terminal in tiny Wibaux, Mont. So while all four are busy trying to locate the package and fend off the town's sheriff (Tom Noonan), things take a turn for the worse when gangster "Uncle" Teddy Deserve (John Malkovich) appears to be coming to clean up their mess.
Among the film's many problems is the fact that it's one long string of cliches. Witness the bad, affected Italian accents (particularly by Malkovich) and the ridiculous character names. And none of those characters are very appealing — especially Pepper's whiny Matty Demaret, supposedly the sympathetic one. Are we actually expected to root for these guys?
"Knockaround Guys" is rated R for frequent use of strong sex-related profanity and crude sexual slang terms, graphic violence (brutal beatings and gunplay), simulated drug use (marijuana and cocaine), gore and use of ethnic slurs. Running time: 92 minutes.
E-mail: jeff@desnews.com