Film Review: The Family

Full of enough cliché and violence to satisfy any casual moviegoer, Luc Besson’s "The Family" finds itself firmly stuck in an unsettling dichotomy of comedy and gruesome action flick. The cast is star-studded, featuring actors from Robert De Niro (father) and Michelle Pfeiffer (mother) to Dianna Agron (daughter) and John D’Leo (son).

The story focuses on the lives of the Manzoni family, which is headed by the classic mobster, Giovanni Manzoni (De Niro), and his rather sassy wife, Maggie (Pfeiffer). Although under the guidance and supervision of the FBI’s Witness Protection Program, the members of the family find themselves constantly on the run from a wronged former family member who has placed a $20 million reward on Giovanni’s head. The Manzoni family has moved countless times before to evade multiple murder attempts. In their latest escapade, they find themselves in a quaint town in rural Normandy. However, with some far-fetched movement of news, the family’s hidden location is revealed, and a gang of hitmen shows up to bring an end to the Manzonis. At the culmination of the film, the family triumphantly kills all their would-be murderers, whose devastation of the town ultimately results in yet another relocation of the Manzoni family.

While Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer were brilliantly cast, the movie fell quite flat and seemed to be in bad taste. De Niro, with his nonchalant swagger, glided through his role of the has-been patriarch of the splintered Manzoni Mafia family with almost seamless precision. While having some difficulties with her Italian-American accent, Pfeiffer offered a portrayal of a mother who was as tough as nails—and actually quite frightening in some cases—yet held enormous ties to her family and the love one finds with its unity. D’Leo held his own in his role, but Agron should have never been part of the cast. Not to say that she was a terrible actress, but her natural charm and air of innocence overshadowed her attempt at the darker nature of a Mafia member’s daughter.

Unfortunately, De Niro and Pfeiffer could not save the film from its unoriginal plot and overdone dark nature. The story followed that of all movies dealing with a coarse Mafia family, with gunshots and constant references to food. In addition, Besson’s attempt at comedy was horrifically covered by the blood of literally over 20 characters' explicit deaths. Although it seemed like the scenes of brutality in the film were intended to add a sense of dark humor, all they brought was a bad taste and an uneasy feeling. They were too aggressive for a normal comedy, and it seemed like Besson only took into account his own sadistic pleasure in filming the scenes.

While "The Family" had an exciting soundtrack melding contemporary styles and classic songs, the lack of originality and offbeat violence were turnoffs to what I thought could be a hit of 2013.