Mad Money
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Movie Reviews of Mad Money
Movie Review: Is it just me, or was this kind of funny?
Summary: 4 Stars
I totally expected to hate this, and really I ONLY watched it because my wife wanted to; that and the fact that Queen Latifah is so amazing in everything (even the movies that are horrible). What I found so fascinating was that I actually was highly entertained, despite the fact that the film starred the `ever-so-crazy' Katie Holmes and Diane Keaton, the queen of neurotic overacting. Let's face it, Keaton was once a goddess on the coat-tails of Meryl Streep. Her early work with Woody Allen is beyond genius, and her early 80's success was well deserved (UGH, watch her in `Reds'...she is simply flawless), but as of late Keaton falls victim to her own talent. Where her neurotic spasms once felt fresh and endearing (watch her in `Manhattan Murder Mystery', where she is crazy yet totally delightful), they now appear overreaching and overdone.
Like a turkey; a burnt one.
In `Mad Money' I was kind of expecting `Because I Said So' (horrifyingly ridiculous movie) Keaton, but what I got was more like `Something's Gotta Give' (much better film, MUCH better performance) Keaton. She is all over the place, but in a good way. She's actually really funny, and she manages to capture a little piece of the Keaton I fell in love with all those years ago.
The film is one of those movies that is so preposterous it might actually make sense. You ever hear one of those stories that is so stupid and so unbelievable that it can't be made up? That's how `Mad Money' feels. It's one of those plots that is beyond believable, so far-fetched that it actually could be possible; you know.
Bridget Cardigan likes being rich, but when her husband gets laid off she finds her checks bouncing and her house up for sale. She winds up taking a custodial job in order to receive benefits and concocts this plan to rob the bank she's cleaning. She enlists the help of Jackie, the diabetic half-wit and Nina, a single mother trying to do right by her two sons, to help her rob the bank of money their just going to destroy anyways. It's a full proof plan, until Bridget gets a little too greedy. I'm telling you, watch it, it's one of those ridiculous plots that starts to make a LOT of sense when it's all said and done.
I think my wife is going to start working at the local bank tomorrow.
The film is far from perfect, but it is enjoyable, really enjoyable. Keaton is her neurotic self, but it works here. Latifah is a little laid back for my tastes, but she handles herself well and when she hits, she hits hard. Katie Holmes reminded me of what I saw in her pre-Cruise. She is sweet and charming and endearing, despite her character's apparent craziness. The men here are just kind of bystanders, but Ted Danson (who had a major comeback with `Damages') fits right into the mood of the film, and Adam Rothenberg will have the ladies paying attention (he reminds me of Butler, which is a good thing).
Watch it. It's funny. Sure, it's not a `great' movie, but it's entertaining, and as one of my Ammy friends (looking at you MKIA) said to me recently...I need to just lighten up, and so I did.
Movie Review: talk about a financial stimulus package...
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Mad Money accomplishes its goal of treating a serious topic in such a light hearted way that you actually enjoy watching the film. The acting is extremely convincing and the plot moves along at a good pace. It held my attention every step of the way!
The action starts when Bridget Cardigan (Diane Keaton) finds out that she and her husband Don (Ted Danson) have finally gone broke after a year of his being unemployed after a "downsizing." Bridget tries in desperation to find work until her former maid gives her a tip that the Federal Reserve Bank is hiring--janitors. Bridget goes from being a wealthy suburbanite to a bank janitor very quickly as she attempts to save the house she has with her husband Don.
When she works at the bank, Bridget can't believe how much money she sees--and none of it, of course, is hers. They actually shred it! She soon concocts a plan to "recycle" some of the money and therefore steal it for herself and her husband. Yet Bridget knows she will need help; she can't do that big a job by herself. She eventually enlists "space cadet" Jackie Truman (Katie Holmes) who lives in a trailer with her husband Bob (Adam Rothenberg). She also gets help from an initially very reluctant Nina Brewster (Queen Latifah) who does the actual shredding of the money.
It isn't long before the women successfully make their first robbery--they pull it off! They're just beginning to celebrate when Bridget's husband Don walks into the room and there's some pretty big explaining to do. Bridget, no matter what, eventually convinces everyone with her aggressive attacks that more heists are necessary for them to have "what they want."
Of course, from here the plot can go anywhere. What happens when a security guard finds out what these three women are doing--will he go along with them and join them or will he turn them in? What about Bridget's plans to spend the money--that doesn't sit well with Nina who wants it very inconspicuous that there's been any changes in their financial situations--will Bridget or Nina win the tug of war? What about the management of the bank and the people they call in as advisers about theft--will THEY catch on and find that these women are stealing? No plot spoilers here, folks--watch the movie and find out! The ending has a few plot twists that may surprise you!
The DVD comes with a commentary; and you can watch it in either widescreen or full screen mode. There's also a cute but very brief "making of" featurette.
Overall, while Mad Money is not exactly going to win best comedy of the year, it isn't bad either. I recommend this movie for a few light hearted laughs and the acting is splendid. People who like Queen Latifah, Diane Keaton, Katie Holmes and Ted Danson will enjoy this movie, too.
Movie Review: The Perfect Crime In An Imperfect Film
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
While I gave "Mad Money" four stars, it truly deserves a solid three-and-a-half stars (I round up as a rule). Diane Keaton heads up a great cast in this criminal comedy about three women who pull off the perfect crime at a federal reserve bank. Keaton plays Bridget Cardigan, a woman desperate for money when her husband Don (Ted Danson) fails to find work after losing his job. She takes a job as a janitor at the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank, where she concocts a scheme with single mother Nina Brewster (Queen Latifah) and trippy trailer girl, Jackie Truman (Katie Holmes). They manage to make quite a profit off of their seemingly no-fail scheme, but how long will it last?
For what they have to work with, Keaton, Latifah and Holmes do excellent jobs. All three are quite funny in their respective roles. Ted Danson steals every scene he is in, and I believe that he delivers one of the best performances in the flick. Roger Cross executes well as Barry, a security guard with a crush on Nina. Christopher McDonald has a small but enjoyable role as the Cardigans' neighbor. Adam Rothenberg plays the dim Bob, Jackie's husband and handles the role quite well. One last mention deserves to go to Stephen Root who plays the head of the bank. He, much like Danson, is a scene-stealer.
What keeps "Mad Money" from being an excellent comedy seems to be a combination of the writing and the direction. Glen Gers' screenplay lacks the punch necessary to keep this film from getting boring at times. This left the actors with a weak script that, despite their best efforts, couldn't lift the the film from the lulls at times. I also think that director Callie Khouri is also to blame. Quicker pacing might have helped the film stay afloat.
Overall, though, "Mad Money" isn't a bad film. I rather enjoyed it, especially the moments that involved the trio of ladies planning their scheme and anything involving Danson. It received a PG-13 rating for sexual material, brief language and brief drug references. I feel that the sexual material referred to was particularly light (and funny) but not deserving of a PG-13 rating. The language is brief, but may not be suitable for children under ten in my opinion. The drug references are laughable, and explained away quite innocently enough.
I recommend this film to fans of light comedy, but don't expect too much from the script. The performers are all top notch, but weighed down by a story that just seems to fizzle out too often.
Movie Review: No One Has Beat the System in a Hundred Years
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Ever since his infamous couch jumping episode incident, not only has Tom Cruise's films underperformed but it has also had a negative affect the reason for the jumping, his wife Katie Holmes. Granted you can argue her lack of being able to put people in theater seats well predates her meeting her husband. First Daughter anyone? Not surprisingly her latest outing tanked at the box office debuting at a meager seventh place.
That is not to say Mad Money (not to be confused with the Jim Cramer television show, which actually makes an appearance) is at all unwatchable. Holmes plays third banana to Diane Keaton (Father of the Bride) who is forced to get a job cleaning toilets at the Federal Reserve Bank when her husband gets fired. There she comes up with a plan to get back to living the upper class lifestyle she is used to by recycling the old and worn money about to be shredded for her own personal use.
As the person actually doing the shredding, Queen Latifah (Bringing Down The House) if the first person she recruits with Holmes entering the fold later. Not to pile on Holmes, but she is the weak link in the trio as the flaky, free spirited character seemed to be more fitted for someone younger and with actual comedic timing.
The movie really shines with its supporting cast. First there is Stephan Root as head of the bank playing a more serious Jimmy James. Ted Danson (Getting Even With Dad) gets plenty of laughs as Keaton's now unemployed husband. Finesse Mitchell, who Saturday Night Live should bring back to play Barak Obama, gets the most laughs as the guard that hits on every woman that goes through the metal detector. And even my big brother Shooter McGavin makes a way too short appearance.
Unfortunately the movie starts off in the third act, one of my least favorite plot devises, with the main players being arrested before flashing back. But how they pull off the caper still is entertaining despite the miscast Holmes. Still they should have gotten caught well sooner than it happened because the movie ends up going about twenty minutes too long where you just think to yourself, go ahead and caught already.
Movie Review: How to Rob The Fed and Get Away With It
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
The Fed has screwed America --- just ask financial experts such as Jim Cramer: Jim Cramer's Stay Mad for Life: Get Rich, Stay Rich (Make Your Kids Even Richer). So why shouldn't three ordinary women strike back a la Thelma & Louise? There's no Brad Pitt in this movie, but there is the adorable Roger Cross as well as the convincingly slackerish Adam Rothenberg. It's definitely better than Diane Keaton's last film, "Because I Said So," although Diane Keaton does get stuck with the upper-middle-class naive white woman shtick. She is, however, the mastermind as a janitor in the Federal Reserve of Kansis City. Queen Latifah excels in the sympathetic but predictable black-single-mom-holding-onto-her-kids role. Katie Holmes shows off just what she can do without Tom, and a potentially lackluster role such as the free-spirit-on-the-edge-of-society pops off the screen thanks to Katie throwing herself into the character as a typical twentysomething grooving to her iPod.
The movie, written and directed by Callie Khouri, who masterminded "Thelma and Louise," has some incisive social commentary inside the fantastic plot. The women (as well as their husbands and boyfriends) are stealing money that the fed has earmarked to be thrown away. While consumerism and debt aren't an excuse for what the three female masterminds cook up, they are a reality of our society. Queen Latifah's character never entirely gets seduced by materialism (buying a nicer house is as daring as she gets), which would have strenghtened the movie's point. One of the funniest moments involves Adam Rothenberg cavalierly discussing how he became a day trader and made seventeen percent on his investments---which is a teeny problem because the IRS is always watching you. Darn the Fed!
This movie is pure fluff and mostly feel-good fantasy, with a DVD that only has commentary and a "Making Of" featurette. The featurette on its own is interesting but the DVD is lightweight as far as extras go.