I was vaguely intrigued in this film as I picked it up from the BBC IPlayer on a whim.The story-line / script is well put together with the premise that a couple of ner-do-wells believe they can ransom the trophy wife of a real estate agent. As you might anticipate from an Elmore Leonard adapted script there's plenty of jeopardy for all involved! In my opinion - certainly worthy of a watch.

Have you ever wondered what life was like for Ordell Robbie and Louis Gara (Samuel L. Jackson and Robert De Niro) before the events of Quentin Tarantino's 'Jackie Brown'? Well now you can find out with this film titled 'Life of Crime', which is based on the Elmore Leonard book 'The Switch' from 1978. Leonard's 1992 novel 'Rum Punch' was adapted into 'Jackie Brown' in 1997. This is more or less a prequel to 'Jackie Brown' that focuses more the Ordell and Louis characters and their earlier crimes.Director Daniel Schechter must be a huge fan of both 'Jackie Brown' and the Coen Brother's film 'Fargo', because 'Life of Crime' is basically both of those films rolled into one with the same type of dark humor that made those films iconic in the first place. While 'Life of Crime' is nowhere near as good as 'Fargo' or 'Jackie Brown', it still has enough laughs, stylistic choices, A-list cast, and fun dialogue to stand on its own despite its low budget of only $12 million dollars.The film is set in the 1970s, complete with the outrageous outfits and hairdos true to that time period where we see a younger Ordell (Mos Def) and Louis (John Hawkes), trying to figure out how to make money on the next scheme. They hatch a plan to kidnap a wealthy socialite named Mickey Dawson (Jennifer Aniston) who is married to a very wealthy business man named Frank (Tim Robbins). Ordell and Louis know that Frank is always out of town and is indeed seeing a younger woman on the side named Melaine Ralston (Isla Fisher, but formally played by Bridget Fonda in 'Jackie Brown').They do indeed kidnap Mickey, but to their dismay, Frank is perfectly fine with his wife being kidnapped and possibly killed, so he doesn't have to pay a ransom or any spousal support in the future. In fact, he already sent Mickey divorce papers. Now, Ordell and Louis must go to Plan B to collect money on their crime. Meanwhile, a man named Marshall Taylor (Will Forte), a married man who is trying to have an affair with Mickey gets caught up in this schemed and ends up being kidnapped as well, only adding to the chaos for Ordell and Louis to get out of. Some of same sadistic funny moments from 'Fargo' and 'Jackie Brown' are evident in 'Life of Crime', and Schechter does a great job of keeping it fresh while paying homage to the previous films.Even though there are some tense moments and some funny dialogue, the pacing is somewhat off here and doesn't flow as well as it should. But with the fun and entertaining cast here, you'll tend to turn the other cheek at these ailments. Aniston is excellent here, as is Robbins and Forte. Mos Def and John Hawkes are excellent as younger versions of these 'Jackie Brown' characters, which should make De Niro and Jackson proud.

Meh. That's the word I want to use when I think of an overall impression of Life of Crime. Released in 2013 at the Toronto International Film Festival, Life of Crime is an independent crime-comedy film directed by Daniel Schechter. Although it's classified as such, I did not find myself experiencing any kind of laughter. The writing, also done by Schechter and Elmore Leonard, is lackluster with little comedy. So….meh. Ex-convict Ordell Robbie (Yasiin Bey) persuades Louis Gara (John Hawkes) to partner with him and the Nazi-supporter Richard (Mark Boone Jr) to pull off the kidnapping of Mickey Dawson (Jennifer Anniston). The kidnappers plan to demand a one million dollar ransom from Mickey's husband, Frank Dawson (Tim Robbins), who has been keeping some excessive assets in a bank account kept secret from his wife. However, Ordell hasn't done enough research and fails to realize that the Dawson marriage is in shambles. Mickey appears to be lingering on the thought of having an affair with one of Frank's friends, Marshall Taylor (Will Forte); she is getting fed up with her abusive husband. Meanwhile, Frank is already fed up with Mickey, and on the cusp of filing for divorce. When Ordell and Louis come to abduct Mickey, they are surprised to find Marshall arriving at the house to pay her a visit – so they knock him out and leave him in the closet. However, the pair come to find out that Marshall is just a molehill…the mountain comes when Frank refuses to pay the ransom. I had several problems with this film; but let's begin with the writing of the characters. First of all, there were exactly two people with any sort of moral compass: Louis and Mickey. The other characters were morally disgusting, and not in the amusing way that Heath Ledger's Joker was. Although he was kidnapping a woman, Louis did show remorse and also protected Mickey from the cruel intentions of his cohorts. Mickey is ever the sweet and innocent victim in both her marriage and her kidnapping. Life of Crime is one of those flicks that shows the story through the views of the heroine and the villain(s) equally. The benefit of this type of film is that the villain has the chance to make the audience sympathetic for him or her. Life of Crime does not take advantage of this. The audience is given no information about the past of the kidnappers, and thus their actions are just black and white – there is no morally gray area. We aren't even told what the partners need the money for! The only characters we get any back story on are Mickey and Frank; but even that back story is wanting. There is some good character development in Mickey, but overall the characters in this film lack depth.Despite the problems with the actual characters, the acting in this film is just satisfactory; only one actor stands out in this film as more than that. Boone does a great portrayal of Richard (I always feel awkward when complimenting an actor on playing a horrifying character well!). Richard is clearly meant to be the truly terrible member of the kidnapping team, with all his Nazi paraphernalia and his aggressive attitude. There are even a few moments where Boone appears to be more of a literal beast than a man. Boone turns Richard into massive and terrifying villain – the kind you want to see burn. This movie could have been so much more. The plot is an interesting and original idea, but the opportunity goes to waste under the writing and direction. Also, there are a few plot holes that the audience gets stuck on. Overall, the film is unengaging and a total miss.

Based on late Elmore Leonard's novel The Switch, 'Life of Crime' is an interesting watch, that is funny & finely acted, too! But the slow-pace, makes you feel restless at times. 'Life of Crime' Synopsis: Two common criminals get more than they bargained for after kidnapping the wife of a corrupt real-estate developer who shows no interest in paying the $1 million dollar ransom for her safe return.'Life of Crime', at 99-minutes delivers a story of crime & deception, admirably. But, as I mentioned before, the slow-pace gets to you after a point. Right after the kidnapping incident, one expects the pace to get faster, but it doesn't. Fortunately, the final act picks up momentum. But better pacing was the need of the day! Daniel Schechter's Adapted Screenplay has merit & the dialogue, are wonderful. Schechter's Direction is neat, as well. Cinematography is standard. Editing is the weakest link of the enterprise. 'Life of Crime' would've fallen flat had its casting not been right, but over here, each & every actor is perfectly cast. John Hawkes continues to perform brilliantly. Tim Robbins is tremendously despicable, enacting a moron to perfection. Jennifer Aniston is good, but looks aged here. Isla Fisher is first-rate. Will Forte is excellent. Mos Def is superb. Mark Boone. Jr impresses, as well. On the whole, 'Life of Crime' gets some things right, not all. Watch it if you must!