3415. The Ladykillers (2004)

Starring: Tom Hanks, J.K. Simmons, Marlon Wayans

Director: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

Running Time: 104 mins

The Ladykillers is an American film about a man who lets a basement room from an old woman, which he uses as his base to launch his plans for a major heist involving a group of eccentric criminals.

As much as it tries to emulate the glory and effortless charisma of its predecessor that came long before, this remake of The Ladykillers really doesn’t have that spark, proving a genuinely disappointing watch throughout.

Let’s start, however, with the positives, which come in the form of the film’s most eccentric qualities. The movie may not be anywhere near as sleek as the original film, but there is something weirdly fun about Tom Hanks’ hyper-cartoonish Southern gentleman, along with some odd quirks of the secondary characters that throw up a few laughs, even if they get a bit tired towards the end.

That said, this remake of The Ladykillers really fails to hit the nail on the head of a fun yet devilishly dark heist movie, and almost manages to sit around doing nothing until the very last act.

With a languishing pace, repetitive dialogue and, yes, cartoonish characters, The Ladykillers never manges to really drive home that sleek and sly edge which made the original such a memorable watch.

As a result, The Ladykillers proves rather a dull affair throughout, lacking the true laughs to delight, all the while flailing about for the majority of its runtime with a story that just doesn’t go anywhere until the last few minutes. So, that’s why I’m giving the film a 6.1 overall.