Release Date: March 26, 2004
MPAA Rating: R for language including sexual references
Written and Directed by: Joel and Ethan Coen
Starring: Tom Hanks, Marlon Wayans, Irma P. Hall, George Wallace, Ryan Hurst, Jason Weaver, Steven Root

Plot:
The plot of an eccentric professor-turned-criminal-mastermind (Tom Hanks) to commit the massive heist of a New Orleans riverboat casino appears to be thwarted by the actions of Mrs. Munson, the seemingly-innocent little old landlady of the house that he and his three accomplices are staying in, and which is integral to their scheme (they want to dig a tunnel from it to where the casino's money is kept). So they decide that they need to remove her from the equation, but doing so might prove to be more difficult than they expect.

Review:
"A Tarantino and a Coen Brothers film coming out the same weekend. It was indeed a surprise to me, but a whole lot of fun." That is the first line in my review of last years Intolerable Cruelty. This year with The Ladykillers I can say, A Kevin Smith and a Coen Brothers film coming out the same weekend. Was it a surprise to me and a whole lot of fun?" Well heres the problem with that question, last year Tarantino's film Kill Bill was better than the Coen Brother's film Intolerable Cruelty. This year the Coen Brothers film is better than Kevin Smith's film and the answer to the question is certainly, undoubtedly Yes.

There are many fans of these directors and they have delivered some of the most original films in cinema history. The Ladykillers is their latest addition to their list of films and it is even a better film than that of Intolerable Cruelty. When you think of Coen Brothers comedies you think of films like Raising Arizona, The Hudsucker Proxy, The Big Lebowski and O Brother, Where Art Thou? The Ladykillers can squeeze in there and join that group as well.

Now, Intolerable Cruelty was the Coen Brothers first attempt at going mainstream and it succeeded. Once again they have succeeded with their second mainstream film. It is not a problem if these directors continue to make mainstream films, as long as they continue to add that formula that they have in all their other past films.

Tom Hanks plays Professor G.H. Dorr in the film who claims to be a professor when indeed he is a criminal. Hanks has never played a role like he did in The Ladykillers. It was an unusual role, but he made it his own and was unbelievable in it. His character was completely charming, intelligent and sophisticated. He plays a great lead in the film and they couldn't have casted anyone better for his part, no one could fit into his shoes for this role.

What amused me the most about Hank's character was the fact that he could talk his way out of anything. With such a large vocabulary and quick responses in detail, his character was excellent in many ways and very memorable for that matter. Its just another great performance to add to his resume and in the future it won't do bad to have another Hanks and Coen Brothers combination.

The other actors in the cast include Marlon Wayans, J.K. Simmons, Tzi Ma and Ryan Hurst. All of these actors including Hanks join up to engage in the criminal activity of robbing the money from the casino. Each character has their own unique abilities and disabilities. They are each entirely different and that brings a sense of some great characters to witness while the criminal act occurs.

Marlon Wayans made himself known to the public as a good actor when he played Tyrone C. Love in Darren Aronofsky's masterpiece Requiem For A Dream. His role in The Ladykillers doesn't call for a strong role like in Requiem For A Dream, but instead it called for Marlon to be more like how he really is. He did decent in his role and he brought a handful of laughs to the screen all on his own.

Its not for certain that everyone will enjoy the films comedy, because it definitely is dark humor with a twist from these directors. However, anyone who enjoys dark and sick humor and have enjoyed the Coen's past comedies, should enjoy this. And if you don't end up laughing from this film there is still plenty to enjoy from it besides comedy itself.

Intolerable Cruelty for one thing was just average on the laughs, but the story was intriguing, beautiful in some senses and wonderfully filmed that it still resulted in being a solid film. While being solid, Intolerable Cruelty was still missing that essence that has made other Coen Brothers movies so memorable. This film has more of what Intolerable Cruelty was missing, but its still not complete, but the Coen Brothers original style for filmmaking is present.

The Ladykillers is a laugh out loud comedy, but there is more than just laughter that you receive from this film. It has such a cleverness to it that screams Coen Brothers with an exclamation mark. The characters also play a big part in what makes this film run smoothly and the extremely odd situations. So, there is plenty to like in this film and its not shy of anything in significance.

On the comedy note, there is a hefty amount of cursing. The cursing results a lot with the characters problems with one another and the fights that occur while on the mission for the money. It can get childish at times, but it actually gets better as it strolls along. The Coen Brother's know their limits and they never seem to step over the edge in a failing kind of way.

Might I add, the music in this film is interesting, but not that appealing. There is rap, hip hop and gospel music that is heard throughout the film. The music was composed by Carter Burwell who has made the music for all of the directors films. The music obviously fit well with the point of the characters plan in the movie, but was very annoying at times and a bit overlong. I guess you can say it needed it though to make its point.

Its quite odd though because there are two types of crowds walking in to watch this film. On one hand, audiences that bought their ticket for The Ladykillers are in it to see the film because of the directors. On the other hand their are people that are simply going to see the film because of the main actor Tom Hanks. Some may be disappointed if they were thinking of it being a different kind of film, but I see no disappointments to be had with The Ladykillers if you enjoy these directors.

The film ends far, far and way from a typical Hollywood ending. It has all the signs of a Coen Brother's creative end to a good film. The ending is completely unpredictable and shocking. It can only be described as an ingenious end to its already driven cleverness and hilarity. Their is just so much that Ladykillers delivers to the audience in just a short amount of time and it has that special Coen Brother's touch that fans want, simply brilliant.

The Ladykillers has Coen Brothers written all over it, their fans will enjoy it. From its hilarity to its direction and to its cleverness, it stands as a strong achievement. This is one of the better comedies in years. The wonderful thing is The Ladykillers is not only a comedy, its also an amazing work of intelligent criminal acts and of original ideas. If the Coen Brother's continue like this, then the future seems like a very bright one indeed.