Director: Luc Besson.
Starring: Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dianna Agron, John D’Leo, Tommy Lee Jones.
Certificate: 15.
Running Time: 111 minutes.
Synopsis: The Manzoni family, a notorious mafia clan, is relocated to Normandy, France under the witness protection program, where fitting in soon becomes challenging as their old habits die hard.
It was hoped that last year’s SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK would finally signal something of a resurgence for Robert De Niro’s career after years of paycheck-cashing comedies kickstarted, in part, by the less-than-stellar MEET THE PARENTS series. If THE FAMILY is anything to go by, that hope has been purely in vain.
Not that this hits the gruff, toilet-humour lows of the aforementioned series, nor its FOCKERS sequels and spin-offs – and, admittedly, it does return De Niro to the classic Mafioso role he perfected all those years ago. Even better, he’s finally come full circle, from the loudmouth upstart Johnny Boy of MEAN STREETS to THE FAMILY’s retired mob boss Giovanni Manzoni. But, once again, we’re back in the comedy circuit. This wouldn’t matter if it was done well, but much of the humour in THE FAMILY is delivered so forcibly and awkwardly that it feels as if De Niro isn’t the only one who’s working to pay the bills. It’s also billed as a thriller, though it’s not wholly clear why, such is the nature of Luc Besson’s disjointed, oft-plodding script.
Speaking of which, the narrative is nothing to write home about. Manzoni (or Fred Blake, as he’s now called) and the family clan – wife Maggie (Michelle Pfeiffer) and kids Belle and Warren (Dianna Agron and John D’Leo), none of whom are notable in any way whatsoever – up sticks and move out to Normandy under the witness protection program after Pater rats out his comrades. It’s standard fish-out-of-water fare, and the disjointed tone hardly does it any favours, shifting from black comedy to action thriller and back again seemingly at random.
There’s the odd nod to a time when these actors were in their heyday – in one instance, De Niro’s character joins a local film club, whereupon the members decide to watch and debate a classic from his lengthy CV – but this only confuses the tone further. For a film seemingly so self-aware (and in the case of De Niro’s role, a film that descends so far into self-parody), it’s surprising how little Luc Besson’s script attempts to capitalise on the merits of its actors.
Perhaps it would have been better had it nailed down a specific tone. Instead, Besson throws every film trope he could think of at the wall and figures that, what the hell, everything should stick! Of course, it doesn’t, and his success rate is hit-and-miss, with plenty of gags falling flat. Still, some raise a smile – even a chuckle once or twice – and by the end, we do at least care for De Niro’s character in some small way. Even if he does have a two-dimensional family.
THE FAMILY is released in UK cinemas on Friday November 22nd.
