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    		•

    FILMS

    Made (2001)
  • Starring Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Famke Janssen, Peter Falk, Vincent Pastore, Sean "Puffy" Combs

  • Directed by Jon Favreau

    • Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn are back together and have made a movie that desperately wants to recreate the feel of Swingers, yet falls quite short of a totally money movie. This one is about two friends, Bobby and Ricky (Favreau and Vaughn, respectively) who end up working for a low-level organized crime boss, Max (Falk).

    Bobby is a good guy. He's good with kids and is just one of those all-around genuinely nice guys. He's courteous and respectful and quite pleasant. Sure he's a bodyguard and a boxer, but he's a good guy. And then, there's Ricky. Vaughn's Ricky is similar to the character he played in Swingers but augmented to the Nth degree, as well as enhanced with the ability to deliver maximum annoyance to the audience in the minimum amount of time. In any given situation you can trust Ricky to do and say the exact opposite of what should be done. He's like a child that is told not to touch, say, a glass bowl. And the minute you turn your back, he's not only touching said bowl, but wearing it as a helmet and running around the room looking for something to headbutt. For one or two scenes this can be pretty funny, as it was in Swingers. But Made seems to be a showcase for Vince Vaughn to be extremely obnoxious while John Favreau acts embarrassed for his friend's inhuman ability to be an ass.

    That's the bulk of the movie. Ricky opens his mouth and the audience cringes. Bobby is about to make some progress with the plot and Ricky is right there to completely and utterly screw things up. Here's a ferinstance: They're not supposed to drink while on the job. What does Ricky do? Orders some cocktails on the plane. Sure it doesn't sound like a big deal, but Max just told them not to drink when they're working for him.

    I could go on ad nauseum in this vein but it'd be pointless. I'm sure you get the picture. I recommend this movie because there are some funny parts. But you have to tackle your way through all of the scenes where Ricky shows you how much of a social retard he is. And it's completely convincing.

    Ultimately, this movie leaves you wondering why some people are friends. Or, perhaps it goes to show you that even the biggest of idiots can surprise you now and again. I'm not really sure what the message of this one was. Other than if Ricky were my friend I'd have to pummel him about five times a week.

    Be on the lookout for Dustin Diamond's cameo. That's right! Screech from Saved By The Bell walks past the camera and gives the bouncers a couple of fist-knocks, as if to show that he's cool. He's with it. He's moved on from his Screech days....

    Right. That's why Ricky berates him the moment Diamond walks off-camera.

    Other performances of note: Puff Daddy. Or is it P-Diddy? Or is there not a hyphen there? Or shall I lowercase the "diddy?" Frankly, I could give a rats ass as to the status of current moniker. The fact of the matter is that he's pretty darn good in this movie. He's serious throughout, and delivers his lines like a professional. The only thing that isn't entirely believable is that a man in his position would've had Vaughn's Ricky killed after their first encounter. That's just how it'd go down.

    Also, watch the credits carefully. You'll never guess who was one of the co-producers. I bet you'll never guess. OK, fine. I'll tell you. Peter Billingsley. Not sure who that is? How about this as a refresher, "I want an official Red Rider carbine action 200 shot range model air rifle." That's right! Our little Ralphie from A Christmas Story is all grown up and producing movies. Let's just hope that the kid with the yellow eyes isn't still bullying him on the studio lot.