The Mafia are less intimidating than I remember... Scott Gentry reviews "The Family" starring Robert De Niro.

"The Family" (15)
Director: Luc Besson.
Starring: Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dianna Agron, John D'Leo and Tommy Lee Jones.
Rated: 15 for containing, strong violence, strong language and sex. 
Running time: 111 minutes.
Out now in UK cinemas.

After betraying their friends in the Mafia, the Manzoni family (De Niro, Pfeiffer, Agron and D'Leo) are forced to re-locate to France, under a witness protection program; led by CIA agent Stansfield (Tommy Lee Jones). However, it's not long before the family revert to their old habits and threaten their cover.

I honestly wanted to enjoy "The Family" to a certain degree, but it was impossible. Labelled as a black-comedy, "The Family" runs exceedingly thin on jokes and action. The whole cast (albeit a popular one) play their roles frustratingly, delivering terrible performances throughout the entire film. De Niro's acting is atrocious and instead of trying to re-brand himself, he continues to play the same character from the "Meet The Parents" series.

Is there a highlight? If I'm going to be generous, then it would be the scene in which Robert De Niro actually watches "Goodfellas" when attending a local film club.

If you think that's bad, well it only gets worse.

Verdict

As action/comedies go, it's abominable. There is no silver lining to this particular film, which so desperately wants to be something it isn't. My advice? Watch "Goodfellas". 

1 star out of 10.

Written by Scott Gentry.