Sidney Lumet continues his remarkable
six-decade run of New York-set dramas and Vin Diesel returns
from the action-film gulag to give a shambling comic turn as
the real-life mobster who hijacked a huge trial in the goombah
comedy-drama "Find Me Guilty." Emphasizing the comic aspects
of tale will help pull thesp's "Pacifier" fans, though dicey
prosthetics and wig work may alienate those who prefer him
buff 'n' bald. Verdict here for mid-March opening is moderate
to good biz, with strong cultish ancillary possible.
In 1987-88, some 20 members of the Lucchese crime family,
each with his own lawyer, were brought to trial on some 76
charges ranging from criminal conspiracy to narcotics
trafficking. The jam-packed trial dragged on for 21 months,
and the shocking verdict is the stuff of legal legend.
Earlier, after being pumped full of lead by his strung-out
cousin Tony Compagna (Raul Esparza), Lucchese crime figure
Giacomo "Jackie Dee" DiNorscio (Diesel) is jailed on charges
based on the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organization
Act.
Thinking he can co-opt the mobster to roll over on his
family during the massive proceedings, comically hard-charging
prosecutor Sean Kierney (Linus Roache) offers a reduction in
DiNorscio's 30-year sentence in return for his testimony.
Jackie Dee refuses.
As the trial gets under way, the mobster decides to
represent himself, against the advice of by-the-book lead
defense attorney Ben Klandis (Peter Dinklage). What follows
are extended comic riffs to the jury by DiNorscio, apparently
drawn from trial transcripts, that put him at odds both with
long-suffering Judge Finestein (Ron Silver) and vicious crime
boss co-defendant Nick Calabrese (Alex Rocco).
Part mob-trial thriller, part "dese 'n' dose" extended
standup routine, character-rich pic plays like vintage Lumet,
mining the grim comedy from life-and-death legal wranglings in
the manner of "Dog Day Afternoon," "Prince of the City" and
"The Verdict."
And if Diesel's perf as a real-life wisecracking wise guy
isn't quite at the iconic level of Al Pacino, Treat Williams
or Paul Newman, neither is it as determinedly one-dimensional
as his action hero persona.
Genuinely committed to the mob family, DiNorscio is imbued
by Diesel with genuine emotional ambivalence: Perhaps, as
Calabrese thinks, he's an opportunist looking to save his own
skin. But maybe, as Jackie Dee keeps saying, family is
everything.
Principal supporting cast is aces. Roache manages to make
the cartoonish Kierney a legitimate force, and the
straight-faced readings of Dinklage, Silver and crime film vet
Rocco ground the pic in gravitas. Annabella Sciorra gives a
master class on tough-gal posturing in her single memorable
scene as DiNorscio's tough-as-nails ex-wife. Huge supporting
cast is stocked with primo New York theater talent, as well as
faces familiar to anyone who watches crime shows on the tube.
Other than Diesel's spotty makeup and dubious wig, tech
credits are tops. Audaciously framed closeups from d.p. Ron
Fortunato hark back to Lumet's days in live television, while
wider panning shots of production designer Christopher Nowak's
elegantly threadbare courtroom, jammed to the rafters with
goodfellas, are funny in and of themselves. Jaunty score
comprises extended riff on Louis Prima's version of the 1928
chestnut "When You're Smiling (the Whole World Smiles With
You)."