To me, this movie is perfection.

good back-story, and good acting

Boring

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

This is a remake of an Italian film which was re-made in America in the mid 1980s as Crackers which flopped at the box office but I found it funny.This low key period comedy heist film follows lowlife criminal (Luis Guzman )who learns of a 'bellini' in jail and plans to rob a safe. His girlfriend (Patricia Clarkson) on the outside gets a gang together. The trouble is the gang are inept and plagued by bad luck. George Clooney pops in a few times to give advice as to how they should crack a safe.The film has a Coen Brothers feel to it but it is an early effort by the Russo Brothers who have enjoyed great success with Captain America 2.It has an ensemble cast which includes William H Macy, Sam Rockwell and Michael Jeter but the film is just trying too hard to be smart or to be a cult film and it is a soufflé that fails to rise to the occasion.

This to me must be one of the most underrated films ever made. I fantastic cast, colourful characters, a great script and wonderful soundtrack. It has a Cohen Bothers beat and feels like it could be at home on stage. The film follows unsuccessful lowlife criminal, Cosimo (Luis Guzmán), who lands up in jail and learns of a "bellini", a once in a lifetime job, from his lifer cellmate. He wants to pay a 'mullinski", someone to take the fall for him, so he can get out of jail to pull the job. His girlfriend begins to enquire around and in doing so ends up letting more people know about the bellini forcing the team to grow. Eventually Pero (Sam Rockwell), a second rate boxer, attempts to take the fall but things don't go according to plan and Pero finds out the details of the job and leaves Cosimo in jail. Pero is forced to let the others in and the fun and games starts as the motley crew attempt to plan and execute the caper.It is a wonderful, well thought out script. The style of the story and directing have a Cohen Brothers feel and that is not a bad thing. It is light and humorous and has plenty of laughs. It is silly, but not far from stupid.The casting and acting was superb and everyone puts on good performances, but Michael Jeter as old man Toto was the star of the show and it is one of the most memorable performances I have seen. George Clooney seems totally at home in this style of movie and was excellent too.If my film collection was burned and stolen, Welcome to Collinwood would be in my top 20 and always delivers a warm smile.9/10

Produced by George Clooney and Steven Soderbergh, this little crime caper with some good people in it sounded like an average film, and I had nothing else to do. Basically Cosimo (Luis Guzmán) is arrested for attempted theft of a car, and while in the clink an old guy tells him a perfect heist, the kind of job you only dream of, so he wants to get out of prison quick. He tells his girl Rosalind (Patricia Clarkson), and she spills the beans to a small gang of crooks who will relish the job. These crooks: Pero (Sam Rockwell), Riley (William H. Macy), Toto (Michael Jeter) and Leon (Ghost Ship's Isaiah Washington) plan their raid on the jewellery store and its safe, but of course not everything can go smoothly, so expect plenty of mistakes and near catches during the job. Also starring Andrew 'Andy' Davoli as Basil, Gabrielle Union as Michelle, Jennifer Esposito as Carmela and George Clooney in a little cameo as Jerzy. It is a little boring with loads of chat and made up words, e.g. "Bellini", and it has to be said that the funny moments are really when they actually try to do the job, and fail miserably, but I guess it's okay to see once. Worth watching!

I am quite surprised that no review or comment on this movie mentions the fact that is is a remake, actually a blurred photocopy of the original. The movie that inspired it it's called "I soliti ignoti", it is a classic of Italian comedy, it was shot in 1958 by Mario Monicelli and it featured Vittorio Gassman, Renato Salvatori, Memmo Carotenuto (in the part here played by George Clooney), Carla Gravina, Marcello Mastroianni and the stunning Claudia Cardinale, who was 20 years old at the time... In 1959 Nanni Loy shot a sequel of this movie called "L'audace colpo dei soliti ignoti", same cast but Nino Manfredi is replacing Mastroianni.