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The Coen Brothers have done it again. You know, these are the guys who
usually bring you intelligently-written comedies that involve colorful
people who fit meticulously detailed cultural stereotypes. They are often
in situations where you gleefully watch them squirm with the consequences
of their evil plans after things go terribly awry. In this case, they
direct their sharply pointed camera lens back to 1955 with a remake of
the movie, The Ladykillers.
Here, Tom Hanks plays Professor G.H. Dorr, a thick-accented and
articulately well-spoken southerner, deeply cultured in his passions
for the finer things in life. He walks into the home of the widow Marva
Munson in order to rent a room in her home, which she has had available
since her dearly departed husband has died (but still dutifully watches
over her through a portrait adorned conspicuously over the mantelpiece
in the living room). Her house is perfectly situated for his plan, which
is to dig a tunnel to the nearby casino and rob it for its millions,
with the help of some questionably-chosen accomplices. The team of mostly
bumbling idiots and strongly conflicting personalities are skilled enough
to do their jobs, but only just so, leaving plenty of opportunity for
laughter at their expense... plus the delight of watching people be
real. Ocean's 11, this is not. And as far as plot goes, that's about
it; there are no plot twists, complicated turns, or multiple layers of
interlacing characters that used to be the signature for the filmmaking
team of brothers Ethan and Joel.
In keeping with this, the movie really strives for simplicity, almost as a
salute to the culture in which it resides. Though it's set in modern day,
the town itself is hardly any different than one might have imagined in
the 1800s, except for the casino. The dress, decor, and even the little
white church and its Sunday services look as though you've stepped back
in time. This is even more comedically punctuated when modern day pierces
through the thin veil with Marlon Wayans' performance. As a member of
the criminal team working as "the inside guy" within the casino, his
foul mouth and hip-hop gangsta rappin' ways actually serve as a comedic
reminder that we are not, by any means, living in the 1800s.
People may talk of Tom Hanks' performance, but to me, it wasn't much of
a stretch for him. A fine job, to be sure, but I expect that. Instead,
the screen was stolen by Irma Hall's portrayal of Marva Munson. She portrays
her character just as you might expect, but does so in a way that you
can't help but just enjoy watching her do it. Hall, a veteran TV actor
with a slightly less active career in film, deserves the attention.
Indeed, the Coen brothers films of late, including Ladykillers, have
all been considerably lighter on the plot lines, refocusing directorial
attention more towards the actors themselves portraying the extremities
of the cultural and social quirkiness of their characters. While they did
a good job with that here, as with other current works, they used to do
all that and have more fleshed out plotlines to boot. Consider Fargo
and Raising Arizona. Only by comparison is this film weaker than what
my expectations were. On its own, Ladykillers is still delightful.
You can find this movie on the internet database here:
http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0335245/
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