Starring: Gary Auerbach, Elizabeth Barondes, Jennifer Bransford, Bill Capizzi, Bud Cort Average Rating: Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1 Audience Rating: R (Restricted) Binding: DVD Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC Label: Lions Gate Number of Items: 1 Region Code: 1 Release Date: November 27, 2001 Running Time: 94 minutes Theatrical Release Date: 2001
Product Description: Two aspiring boxers lifelong friends get involved in a money-laundering scheme through a low-level organized crime group. Studio: Lions Gate Home Ent. Release Date: 11/16/2004 Starring: John Favreau Famke Janssen Run time: 94 minutes Rating: R Director: Jon Favreau
Amazon.com: Progressing beyond their indie hit Swingers, Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughan return with Made, playing (respectively) Bobby and Ricky, long-time pals in Los Angeles. Failing as amateur boxers, they're recruited by their mob-connected boss (Peter Falk) to make what should be an easy delivery to an East Coast kingpin named Ruiz (Sean "P. Diddy" Combs). By the time they reach New York, Bobby's no-nonsense approach has been bulldozed by Ricky's hopelessly false bravado, which he's blithely absorbed from too many mobster movies. While Ricky invites disaster with reckless ambition, Bobby just wants a happier, legitimate future for his stripper girlfriend (Famke Janssen) and her neglected young daughter.
Made is an urban comedy that's sharper than its popular predecessor if not quite as appealing. Favreau and Vaughn make a hilarious odd couple of the underworld, and Vaughan's bullish performance--even as it grows redundant and deliberately irritating--is a raucous blend of stupidity and baseless braggadocio. Even more surprising is Combs, playing a thinly veiled variant of himself and providing some of the film's funniest, most authentic confrontations. As Favreau mines danger, humor, and pathos from carefully modulated scenes, the movie gains unexpected depth that sustains it through lulls of inspiration. And while Sam Rockwell, Bud Cort, and others pop in to spin gold in walk-on roles, Made continues to work its subtle charms, even with a tacked-on happy ending that arguably doesn't belong. --Jeff Shannon
Watch this movie! It's interesting to see the wide range of reviews of Made.
Personally, I liked it more than Swingers. I haven't laughed so many times during a movie for years. It also has a sweet side, the final two scenes are as powerful as you'll see.
I think people expect too much. This isn't Citizen Kane, but you know what...Citizen Kane was boring. This is dumb, fun and full of guns.
Against the odds, Favreau and Vaughn are money once again In 1996, Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn made an unforgettable duo as swinging bachelors Mike and Trent in the indie comedy smash "Swingers." Five years later, they reteamed for "Made," another film written by Favreau and starring the dynamite duo. This time, Favreau is also behind the camera, directing his first feature film. Do Favreau and Vaughn rise to the occasion again?
The answer, happily, is a resounding yes. "Made" is a sharply written, nicely acted comedy with plenty of laughs. While the film is different than "Swingers" in many ways, it does share one important trait with the earlier film: Favreau again plays the more soft-spoken, grounded of the two, while Vaughn is the cockier, more outgoing one. This time, though, Vaughn's character isn't "money" at all -- he has a remarkable knack for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time and creating problems out of the most innocent situations.
Favreau stars as Bobby, a noble-hearted boxer who earns extra money by escorting his stripper girlfriend Jess (Famke Janssen) to her appointments. Bobby's not cut out for the job, though, and when a customer gets too touchy-feely with Jess, Bobby delivers a beat-down. Problem is, the guy he kicked the c--- out of is a wealthy gent, and this causes some problems for Bobby's boss Max (a highly effective Peter Falk). As a result, Max "fires" him from his bodyguard role and gives him a different assignment: Fly to New York and take care of some business for him there.
Bobby insists on taking along his childhood friend Ricky (Vaughn), who for all his idiocy is as loyal a friend as they come. Once in New York, they're picked up by a tough-looking limo driver (Vincent Pastore) and given some cryptic instructions that eventually lead them to crime boss Ruiz (rapper Sean Combs, a.k.a. P. Diddy, making a solid acting debut).
Much of the film's tension and laughs are generated by seeing whether Ricky's foolish antics will land him and Bobby in trouble, ruin their assignment, or even get them killed. Favreau and Vaughn again demonstrate a spectacular rapport that is a treat to watch. Vaughn is particularly impressive in a tricky role that could have been disastrous if handled incorrectly. Instead, Vaughn gives an off-kilter performance that establishes the perfect tone.
Speaking of tone, director Favreau does an admirable job of navigating back and forth between comedy and drama. Perhaps part of his confidence comes from knowing that he wrote the excellent script, which again shows his superb ear for dialogue.
"Made" boasts a darker feel than Swingers, and credit Favreau and Vaughn for not tossing out another rehash of that earlier film. While it may not be "Swingers," "Made" is a gem in its own right and one of the best comedies of the decade.
Casting missteps, chaotic and confused script, not serious MADE, released 2001 will probably be of interest to viewers weighing Vince Vaughn's cult status, and to the curiosity surrounding the script.
Unfortunately, the entertainment promises made turn out short, in more ways than one.
First, it can't be denied that Jon Favreau does a great acting job as the "straight man" (reminiscent of James Gandolfini) while Vaughn puts in a solid effort as he "comedian" among the 2 gangster trainees. Yet, the latter doesn't manage to put in that magic touch that makes any difference or that matters in the overall story, just his usual artful skill in his verbal exchanges with the other protagonists.
The errors, were perhaps casting Peter Falk as the lead mobster in this film, considering the number of years the actor has been type-cast as a television actor playing Columbo. Also, his schtick doesn't seem entirely convincing, as he seems entirely too intellectual, too literate and too comfortable in his Columbo mannerisms that he's inculcated in his other role. There is an identical flaw in selecting P Diddy playing a mobster, considering most people won't separate the real life persona from the actor playing his role in this picture, perhaps due to lack of time in acting school, although Diddy does manage a valuable presence, as does Falk.
The story, to me, fails in terms of coherence, and above all, entertainment value, as it seems written by someone with a bad hangover, such that a minimalist, direct sequence of events is shown, which takes away from the credibility of the movie, (as it's too often demonstrated in low-budget TV pictures.)
The strong point, is the realism of the scenario, a money laundering cash drop, among several gangsters. There's an important issue raised, also, which are the low moral standards and confused behavior seen in certain social circles, which shocks newcomers, (such as Favreau's character) when they come into contact with it, such that he returns the money from the job, by prefering to box, not to be a gangster.
Not a film most would want to see a 2nd or 3rd, time, losing points for its chaotic and confused approach that even Vaughn couldn't undo the mess.
One of the Worst Ever The two main characters are so irritating that you never get to identify with them.They never shut up and run off about their bosses "business" in settings that would get them popped post haste in anything approximating reality. Huge suspension of disbelief needed for this one. Not enjoyable at all. It is actually irratating. The DVD case is worth more than the DVD.
Just Not That Funny The title of my review says it all. The plot set-up is pretty solid, but the rest of the movie just isn't that funny. Vince Vaughn has his funny rambling moments as he does in all of his flicks, but the pacing is off, the dialogue is a bit meandering and...rent it if you're a Vaughn fan.
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