You’ve got a really good cast doing sturdy, reliable work in an otherwise largely generic crime dramedy with Riff Raff, the latest from director Dito Montiel, who made a splash almost two decades ago with the Sundance hit A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints and its follow-up, the legitimately amusing Channing Tatum vehicle Fighting. But Montiel has mostly toiled away in the indie world ever since, and Riff Raff isn’t likely to change that.
From the jump, things aren’t great. John Pollano’s script has the immediate gall to open with a perilous situation — young DJ (Miles J. Harvey) is pointing a gun at whoever Ed Harris is playing — followed by DJ’s voiceover doing the “Bet you’re wondering how this all started” bit before flashing back a couple of days. As it turns out, Harris is playing DJ’s stepdad, Vincent, an ex-gangster, though that is unbeknownst to DJ and his mom Sandy (Gabrielle Union). Coincidentally, Vincent’s biological son Rocco (Lewis Pullman) finds himself on the run after killing the son of mob boss Lefty (Bill Murray), who immediately sets out with dunderheaded hitman Lonnie (Pete Davidson) looking for revenge on Rocco, who takes shelter with DJ and his family after drugging and dragging along his own mother, foulmouthed Ruth (Jennifer Coolidge), and his pregnant girlfriend Marina (Emanuela Postacchini). Hijinks ensue as family secrets and longstanding resentments are revealed, all set against a cozy Christmas holiday.
Little in Riff Raff‘s general shape could be more routine, so Montiel wisely relies on his cast to keep things going down smooth, which mostly works. Harris is especially warm, especially opposite Union as his ill-informed spouse who projects real maternal authority without seeming like a nag or a token wife character. Coolidge likewise delivers amiable work, getting most of the film’s funny lines, even if what she’s delivering is pure shtick for the actress at this point. Strangely sidelined, however, is Harvey, whose DJ is ostensibly the main character here, but who gets very little to actually do until the narrative finally catches up to the film’s opening moments. And Murray, meanwhile, seems at least mildly engaged, but can’t muster the menace of some of his more classic big bad performances in films like Mad Dog and Glory.
Tone remains the other glaring issue in Riff Raff — not because it swings wildly, but because it seems noncommittal. The film’s warmer emotional beats work well — especially in the multiple father/son narrative threads — and that’s mostly because they’re underplayed. But the comedy and violence here also land largely on the more grounded side of things, which is far less successful for a film of this temperament, although the latter’s sudden appearances are occasionally grisly enough to productively disrupt the quieter vibes. But would something more exaggerated or frantic work better? Probably not. And that’s because, in the end, and despite some game ensemble work and surprising emotional resonance, there simply isn’t enough energy to fully overcome a screenplay this rote and rooted in outsized familiarity.
DIRECTOR: Dito Montiel; CAST: Jennifer Coolidge, Ed Harris, Bill Murray, Gabrielle Union; DISTRIBUTOR: Roadside Attractions; IN THEATERS: February 28; RUNTIME: 1 hr. 43 min.
Comments are closed.