3 bodybuilders seek to kidnap a wealthy but extremely unpleasant man with a view to extortion, but things go horribly wrong.
Michael Bay's film is based on a real life case in which the events are so preposterous (largely thanks to the stupidity of the perpetrators) that you wouldn't believe them if they formed the script of a film. Except that they do, and it is true. This explains Mann's decision to film this as a comedy. The blackest of black comedies, admittedly, but a comedy nevertheless. The basic model of someone not that bright who thinks he is a genius, and even less bright underlings who also think their boss is a genius is one which has been used with great success elsewhere, and it works just as well here. The three gang members - Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, and Anthony Mackie - are all excellent, as is Tony Shalhoub as the vastly unsympathetic victim. And, as usual, Ed Harris gives a performance of quiet authority which anchors the whole piece.
This is an enjoyable (if ethically questionable) film, but it is sobering to consider that it is true.
Michael Bay's film is based on a real life case in which the events are so preposterous (largely thanks to the stupidity of the perpetrators) that you wouldn't believe them if they formed the script of a film. Except that they do, and it is true. This explains Mann's decision to film this as a comedy. The blackest of black comedies, admittedly, but a comedy nevertheless. The basic model of someone not that bright who thinks he is a genius, and even less bright underlings who also think their boss is a genius is one which has been used with great success elsewhere, and it works just as well here. The three gang members - Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, and Anthony Mackie - are all excellent, as is Tony Shalhoub as the vastly unsympathetic victim. And, as usual, Ed Harris gives a performance of quiet authority which anchors the whole piece.
This is an enjoyable (if ethically questionable) film, but it is sobering to consider that it is true.