Made
In 1996, Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn made an unforgettable duo as swinging bachelors Mike and Trent in the indie comedy smash Swingers. Five years later, they reteam for Made, another film written by Favreau and starring the dynamite duo. This time, Favreau is also behind the camera, directing his first feature film. Can Favreau and Vaughn, who haven't lived up to the promise they showed in Swingers, rise to the occasion again?
The answer, happily, is a resounding yes. Made is a sharply written, nicely acted comedy with plenty of laughs. While the film is different than Swingers in many ways, it does share one important trait with the earlier film: Favreau again plays the more soft-spoken, grounded of the two, while Vaughn is the cockier, more outgoing one. This time, though, Vaughn's character isn't "money" at all -- he has a remarkable knack for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time and creating problems out of the most innocent situations.
Favreau stars as Bobby, a noble-hearted boxer who earns extra money by escorting his stripper girlfriend Jess (Famke Janssen) to her appointments. Bobby's not cut out for the job, though, and when a customer gets too touchy-feely with Jess, Bobby delivers a beat-down. Problem is, the guy he kicked the crap out of is a wealthy gent, and this causes some problems for Bobby's boss Max (a highly effective Peter Falk). As a result, Max "fires" him from his bodyguard role and gives him a different assignment: Fly to New York and take care of some business for him there.
Bobby insists on taking along his childhood friend Ricky (Vaughn), who for all his idiocy is as loyal a friend as they come. Once in New York, they're picked up by a tough-looking limo driver (Vincent Pastore) and given some cryptic instructions that eventually lead them to crime boss Ruiz (rapper Sean Combs, a.k.a. P. Diddy, making a solid acting debut).
Much of the film's tension and laughs are generated by seeing whether Ricky's foolish antics will land him and Bobby in trouble, ruin their assignment, or even get them killed. Favreau and Vaughn again demonstrate a spectacular rapport that is a treat to watch. Vaughn is particularly impressive in a tricky role that could have been disastrous if handled incorrectly. Instead, Vaughn gives an off-kilter performance that establishes the perfect tone.
Speaking of tone, director Favreau does an admirable job of navigating back and forth between comedy and drama. Made's laughs aren't in your face, and Favreau shows impressive ability in handling this tricky material. Perhaps part of his confidence comes from knowing that he wrote the excellent script, which again shows his superb ear for dialogue.
Made boasts a significantly darker feel than Swingers, and for that reason perhaps it's not as much "fun" to watch. But credit Favreau and Vaughn for not tossing out another rehash of that earlier film. While it may not be Swingers, Made is a gem in its own right and one of the best comedies of 2001. Against the odds, Favreau and Vaughn are money once again.
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Watch Bobby and Ricky go on an impressive all-night bender and do your best to keep up.
Some good laughs and a bit of a sentimental side make this a solid date flick, despite the stripper angle.
Buy this film from Amazon.com
Buy this soundtrack from Amazon.com
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