Such a frustrating disappointment

The acting in this movie is really good.

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Review: This film seemed cheap and it wasn't that funny. Kevin Spacey's Irish accent was appalling, along with the silly storyline that just wasn't that realistic. The gang seemed to get away with the bank jobs, way to easy and you can tell that it was made before the days of forensics. I thought that I would give the movie a chance because of Collin Farrell, who doesn't really say a word throughout the movie, so I just lost interest from the beginning. As for the storyline, I think that the director was attempting a comedy/crime caper, but it went totally wrong when he decided to cast an American in Ireland with a Irish voice, who is surrounded by Irish actors. Disappointing!Round-Up: I wasn't really expecting that much from this film because I hadn't heard of it before, even though it has Collin Farrell and Kevin Spacey in it. After watching it I can totally understand why they kept this movie under the radar because I am sure that its one that they would like to forget. The amazing thing is that its supposed to be based on a true story, which means that the director really cocked up the project because it all seemed a bit of a mess.I recommend this movie to people who are into there Irish crime capers. 1/10

Kevin Spacey is without a doubt one of the best actors of the 90s. After his performances in The Usual Suspect, Se7en and American Beauty, you expect more and more from him. That is why Ordinary Decent Criminal is a huge disappointment.Michael Lynch is the most artful criminal in Dublin who is never in a bad mood. His next heist becomes an obsession when his partners start questioning Michael's ability to plan everything perfectly, although this is the only thing he does when he isn't playing good father at home.I guess, it's partly my fault for not paying enough attention to the thousand plot details which sadly turn out to be the "essence" of the film. I gave the movie a chance by calling it a parody and.... well, parodies are always funny, no matter what they spoof or how they do it. So, it wasn't after all a complete parody on purpose. It's just a different con movie that desperately tries to be funny and fails.Unlike some of his "colleagues", Ordinary Decent Criminal depends too much on story development and logical continuity, forgetting what's the main reason, the viewer has picked this kind of movie - to be entertained. This is definitely not entertainment. It includes one of the most ridiculous scenes ever - the introduction of Michael's TWO wives. I don't know whether it's some kind of a mindless metaphor or strange, dark humor, but the chicks are sisters. Remember, Spacey's character has kids.Ordinary Decent Criminal is complex and confusing. You are not waiting for a funny scene. Instead, you carefully follow the dialog, because there is a big possibility of losing yourself into the boring, pale universe, the film has inhabited.Let's go back to Spacey. I wonder in what condition he has been, signing for that movie. It's not miscasting, but something much worse. An insult to his work in American Beauty, released an year before Ordinary Decent Criminal. The character Michael is eccentric and talkative. Spacey is almost pathetic at times. The only cure for this, is thinking of Lester Burnham and Roger Kint.Writer, Gerrard Stembridge should definitely re-consider his screen writing abilities and be more objective this time. Because, the dialog is very weak and the scenes are often pointless. And we are still talking about a comedy.Ordinary Decent Criminal is a really bad crime comedy which does not deserve your attention.

I was really looking forward to watching this film. It had all the ingredients of a great tongue in cheeker, but it just didn't come together AT ALL. Kevin Spacey's accent was tolerable except that sometimes he forgot to use it and I would rather NOT have had to listen to Linda Fiorentino's pale attempt. She and Helen Baxendale were totally lacking in charm and personality, thankfully their screen kids had loads, so you could find at least some members of his 2 families endearing. You could have strained spaghetti with the plot and I'm sure that the script was written by some adolescent schoolboy in a high school English competition. That said, when I wasn't cringing, I was smirking so it wasn't a totally wasted 90 minutes. I did find the superimposing of Kevin's face on the painting very clever and quite funny. Maybe I'm being a bit harsh but I was expecting a bit of quality viewing and it just never came.

ORDINARY DECENT CRIMINAL has to be one of the more tongue-in-cheek titles Hollywood has devised for a story apparently based on a real life infamous Irish gangster Martin Cahill whose claim to fame was robbing banks and getting away with it while posing as a preceptor of family values! Yet in this reincarnation the plot is suffused with comedy and typical capers and served up by a fine cast on a shaky platform.Michael Lynch (Kevin Spacey, always terrific to watch even in uneven films) is a 'gentleman robber', married to two sisters (Linda Fiorentino and Helen Baxendale) whose latest criminal diversion involves the theft of a Caravaggio painting. How he utilizes his cohorts and evades the police headed by Noel Quigley (the extraordinarily gifted actor Stephen Dillane who played Stephen Woolf in 'The Hours'). The cast is good and makes the best of a confusing arc of storyline written by Gerard Stembridge. Director Thaddeus O'Sullivan keeps things moving along but slides into some boring and non-additive variances from the plot and character development that threaten to grind down the film. Tack on a corny ending not in keeping with the real character on whose life the story is based and the recipe for lack of success in the theaters is obvious.But keep the expectations low and this film will entertain. Sad that for its distribution in the USA the cover of the DVD lists Colin Farrell as one of the stars (Spacey, Fiorentino, Farrell) which says a lot about PR grossness: Farrell is a VERY minor extra here and should any other actor be listed in top billing it is Stephen Dillane! Not a great heist film but it's always good to see more of Spacey. Grady Harp