Knockaround Guys MPAA Rating: R Entertainment: +1 1/2 Content: -4

Matty Demeret (Barry Pepper) finds getting a normal job difficult since hes the son of mob boss Benny Chains Demeret (Dennis Hopper). Finally giving up, he asks his father to let him get into the family business. Benny lets him handle the transport of a half-million dollar loan across the country. But when Benny lets Johnny Marbles (Seth Green) fly the money, Marbles loses it in the town of Wibaux, Montana. Matty, with his friends Chris (Andrew Davoli) and Taylor (Vin Diesel), flies to help Marbles find the lost loan. However, when the money turns up in the hands of the less than honest town sheriff, Uncle Teddy (John Malkovich) flies in to help Matty out. But does Matty really need Teddys help? Although held from distribution for two years, Vin Diesel, Seth Green, Malkovich and Hopper are popular actors and may attract young adults.

Early scenes show Uncle Teddy trying to initiate 10-year-old Matty into the family by having him shoot an informer. The victim comments about getting pornography for Matty, but Teddy then pulls his tongue out. When Matty cant shoot and leaves the room, shots are heard as Teddy finishes the job. Other shootings and brutal beating are graphically depicted. No sex scenes or nudity interferes with the action. Two town boys are shown frequently smoking marijuana and Marbles sniffs cocaine while flying. The town sheriff yields to the temptation of keeping the mob money for his own and appears ready to kill for it. The sheriff proves to be no better than the mobsters, which makes Matty and his friends the heroes. But none is a positive role model. Taylor, a mob enforcer, tells Matty that he made the right decision to get out. Like many modern movies, particularly about mobsters, the dialogue overflows with obscenities. The right decision for discerning viewers is to avoid KNOCKAROUND GUYS.

Preview Reviewer: Paul Bicking
Distributor: New Line Cinema, 888 7th Ave., 20th Fl., New York, NY 10106