Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer play a Mafia family in witness protection in a sleepy French town, and Luc Besson’s 2013 film wants you to laugh at their old habits. It never quite gets there.
Trailer, via Lionsgate Canada.
Giovanni Manzoni’s Fall
Mafia boss Giovanni Manzoni rats out rival boss Don Luchese after surviving an attempted hit. He spends time in prison, then enters the witness protection program with his wife Maggie, son Warren and daughter Belle. Agent Robert Stansfield watches over them as they move from hideout to hideout, ending up in the village of Cholong-sur-Avre, Normandy.
The Brown Water
Giovanni claims to write an historical novel on the Normandy landings. He discovers the water in his house is brown, beats a plumber who wants to change all the pipes, and tracks down the fertilizer factory owner behind the tainted water.
Belle’s Romance
Belle falls in love with Henri, a college student working as a substitute math teacher. She asks for private lessons to spend time with him alone. Later, she seduces him and loses her virginity.
Maggie’s Fury
Maggie visits the undercover FBI agents and blows up a grocery store when its owner spews anti-American comments in French to the other customers. She builds a friendship with a priest at the church, but confesses their crimes and he tells her to never return.
Warren’s Bully
On his first day at school, Warren is beaten by a group. He builds a mini-Mafia within the school, beats up his bullies, and inadvertently alerts Don Luchese to their location when he quotes one of the kingpins’ sayings in the school paper. The paper makes its way to Luchese by chance.
The Cast
- Robert De Niro stars as Giovanni Manzoni, now called Fred Blake
- Michelle Pfeiffer plays Maggie Blake
- Tommy Lee Jones plays FBI Agent Robert Stansfield
- Dianna Agron plays Belle Blake
- John D’Leo plays Warren Blake
- David Belle plays Mezzo
- Domenick Lombardozzi plays Agent Caputo
- Jimmy Palumbo plays Agent Di Cicco
- Ted Arcidi plays Tommy
- Vincent Pastore plays Fat Willy
- Paul Borghese plays Albert
How It Was Made
Tonino Benacquista wrote the 2004 novel Malavita, which Besson adapted. The author wanted American actors with their own legend. Besson proposed De Niro for the lead, and they sent him a letter. Pfeiffer joined later, and Besson auditioned over 500 actors for Warren Blake before casting D’Leo.
A Cast With Weight
The casting is the film’s strongest asset. De Niro and Pfeiffer bring weight to a story that asks them to play it lightly. The body count stays steady, and the jokes land about half the time.
Verdict on The Family
The Family is a crime thriller with a comedy in its head. It knows its actors well, but it never quite finds the balance between the two. The plot moves at a steady pace, the acting is strong, and the jokes land about half the time. It is a film that wants to be two things at once, and it never quite becomes either.
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