Criminal

This is a remake of Nine Queens, the well-reviewed Argentinian film that I also didn’t like. The problem is that this is a con-game movie wherein someone who should know way better falls for the oldest con in the book. Plus, you’re supposed to have antipathy for a character played by John C. Reilly, and that’s just bad casting: No matter what John C. Reilly is doing, he looks like a guy who’s just been dumped by his girlfriend, fired from his job, learned that his dog died and been spit on by Santa Claus. You can’t help but love him. So on the whole, I’d say this was a massive miscalculation. However, the acting and script are good, even if the plot and conception are not, so it’s reasonable to enjoy this pigeon-drop play, even if you’ll guess the ending long before the supposedly savvy characters do.