Highly Overrated But Still Good

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

i am a hardcore Vin Disel fan i have seen his every film & have collected few too like those Riddick & triple x series even fast and furious ones but this film knock around guys 2001 is complete nonsense not only Vin diesel get wasted here but along with him a very talented actor John Malcovich too i mean what the hell were these 2 doing here these guys are legends what made them sign the contract for this film is beyond me didn't hey read the script.there is no story in this film its just a wannabe mafia movie with same old cliché of gangsters fighting over money for those guys who are looking for action will be disappointed as there is none here so move along please the direction sucked also i mean this film tries too hard to be cool but fails the pace is way too slow & whoever wrote the dialogs needs to be fired.the whole cast of this film sucks & what is Seth green doing here this guy sucks in comedy as well so his serious performance is out of the question here.this is one of the worst films Vin Diesel ever done sorry but its a fact,plus the project looks cheaper then a usual Steven Seagal movie.i have to warn you guys here on IMDb please don't even think of buying this DVD it is a waste of time & moneyits films like this ruin the name of Hollywood my rating for Knockaround Guys 2001 is 1/10 Skipp It.

Why would anyone watch a movie that features Seth Green as a gangster or any movie with Vin Diesel for that matter? Personally, I had very little interest in this film, but I wanted to see it because of John Malkovich. He is so funny and no one plays the bad guy, better than he does. As always, Malkovich was brilliant, in an otherwise awful movie. Knockaround Guys is the story of four gangster's kids, who are tired of being nobodies, and decide it's time to make a score of their own. A score that they manage to royally screw up. It's a good premise for a movie and it was written pretty well. They did a great job casting veteran actors like Malkovich and Dennis Hopper to play the crime bosses, but they really blew it when it came to casting their kids. Seth Green isn't believable at all, seriously, I think the little kid in the beginning of the movie could kick his. They try to cover up the fact that he doesn't fit the role by making him a drug addict, but it doesn't work out. Vin Diesel is another one, he may be terrific in crazy action films that hardly have any lines, but when the role is something of substance, and requires a personality, Diesel is the last person who should be cast. He is one of the worst actors I've ever seen, but there is a bright side. When Arnold Schwarzenegger first started acting, he was pretty terrible too, but after gaining some experience, he blossomed into a superstar, who gave us some great films. I hope the same can be said about Diesel in a few years, until then, unless you're a die hard John Malkovich fan, you can avoid seeing this giant mess of a film.

The main lesson out of "Knockaround Guys" is this: if you want to be a criminal or a mobster, you better be a mean and evil son of a mother. Be like Joe Pesci's characters, but a little bit wiser. This film features the sons of New York mobsters who which to emulate their criminal fathers and get a piece of action. Problem is that these young men have been raised in a more privileged upper class manner and lack the brutal attitude found in the older. Matty Demaret (Barry Pepper) wants to be taken seriously by his father Benny Chains (Dennis Hopper) and associate (John Malkovich). Matty send his friend Marbles (Seth Green) to pick up $500.000 in Seattle and fly back in his private plane. Trouble starts once Marbles stop to refuel in a small town in Montana and loses a bag with the money. The ensemble cast is good and solid. While it isn't your average gangster flick, "Knockaround Guys" is good, if albeit under rated. Don't miss the scene where Vin Diesel gives a beat-down to a local tough guy in a bar.

While all of the actors are on their game in this movie, despite the horrible Brooklyn accent of Malkovich, Andrew Davoli stood out as the suave young son of a mobster. I was not aware of him until I saw this movie. He reminds you of a young Daniel Day Lewis. I think it will only take one break out role for this young man to become a household name. I will have to look for other movies that he has done to see if his charisma holds true.Vin plays a good Vin as always. He is such a likable bad guy in all of his movies and Mr. Pepper holds his own against such heavy weights as Malkovich and Hopper. All total an entertaining movie.