The Ladykillers

The inept criminal antagonists in this Coen Brothers' remake of the 1955 classic starring Alec Guinness are are led by Tom Hanks, who is all toothy, affected mannerisms and blabbering balderdash as an over-educated, old-fashioned, pocket-watch-and-hankie type Southern gentleman--the supposed mastermind of a plot to rob a casino vault by tunneling toward it from the root cellar of the clueless old widow's house where he is renting a room (Hanks and his band of eccentric reprobates--Marlon Wayans, J.K. Simmons, and others--pose as classical musicians who rehearse in the basement). But only lip service is paid to this heist (courtesy of Hanks, whose floridly erudite yammering soon inspires one to tune him out), as the Coens are far more interested in milking the foibles and idiosyncrasies of their cast of lowbrow clowns. Only Irma P. Hall as the widow rises above it all with a sharp, funny performance as a Bible-quoting, "yes, ma'am"-demanding, white-glove and Sunday-hat-wearing, black Southern Baptist spitfire who, of course, isn't quite as dumb as the definitely dumber criminals think. Not a necessary purchase. [Note: Available in either a widescreen or full screen version, DVD extras include “The Gospel of The Ladykillers” deleted music scenes (with two full performances by Abbott Kinney Lighthouse Choir with Rose Stone, and the Venice Four), the 11-minute featurette “Danny Ferrington: The Man Behind the Band” on the master guitar maker, “The Slap Reel” outtakes (two minutes of Marlon Wayans getting hit by Irma P. Hall), trailers, and DVD-ROM features. Bottom line: a small extras package for a lackluster Coen Brothers film.] (R. Blackwelder)