Made (2001)

"Made" was the movie that reunited Jon Favreau & Vince Vaughn five years after their surprise breakthrough hit "Swingers". This time, Favreau himself handled the directing duties for the first time in his career, while also writing the screenplay.The setup this time around has certain similarities to "Swingers". This time, instead of being a struggling actor, the lead character is a struggling boxer. The dynamic between the two main characters is also quite similar.The story itself concerns a couple of unsuccessful pals getting involved in low-level organized crime by way of a money-laundering deal. Favreau's character tries to maintain some semblance of quiet professionalism while Vaughn's loudmouth character continually does and says the wrong thing practically every step of the way.As before, Favreau & Vaughn work very well together. Favreau is more or less the straight man while Vaughn is the enthusiastic but often clueless joker. In support, there are some memorable performances from Famke Janssen, Faizon Love, Peter Falk and (surprisingly) Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs. Also, watch for Bud Cort & Sam Rockwell in small, uncredited roles.Favreau's direction is ably handled, though it doesn't have the same panache that Doug Liman brought to "Swingers". My bigger concern is with the screenplay. There are plenty of laughs but in the final act it seems that Favreau can't decide if he wants to veer towards silliness or seriousness.Ultimately, "Made" contains an ample supply of funny moments but I don't think that the story completely holds together. That being said, since the movie does succeed in recapturing at least some of the magic of "Swingers" I'd say that it's worthwhile in the end.

Bobby Ricigliano (Jon Favreau)'s only ambition is to be a professional boxer despite his mediocre record. His lifelong friend Ricky Slade (Vince Vaughn) is a fast talking incompetent. Bobby guards his stripper girlfriend Jessica (Famke Janssen) during her gigs. They also do honest construction work for mob boss Max (Peter Falk). After Bobby hits a client for touching Jessica, Max reassigns him to a job in NYC. Bobby wants Jessica to quit but she can't depend on him to support her and her daughter. Bobby convinces Max for Ricky to join him. Max's partner in NY is Ruiz (P. Diddy).Vince Vaughn's obnoxious character is funny for awhile but eventually he starts to annoy me. The airline stewardess is probably the high point. It's a long ride down with diminishing returns. It's the same move every time. He keeps talking even though the other person is trying to stop. I'm not really annoyed by the antics as much as worn down by the repetition.

Jon Favreau wrote, directed, and starred in this very funny, very clever, well made film.I absolutely love this movie, and am sad that it never got the attention it truly deserves. It's an above average film that didn't get much exposure.All of the acting was great, and I enjoyed all of the different characters, but Favreau and Vince Vaughn were incredible. The scenes they were in together were hilarious and unforgettable. Neither of them disappointed me. A lot of people criticized Vince Vaughn because they thought his character was annoying. And he was! That was the point, he was extremely annoying, and extremely funny. He absolutely stole the show.The overall tone of this movie was gritty and real, which fit with a movie about criminals in New York City. There was never a dull moment, and it never got me bored.The only complaint I have about this film is the cussing. I'm not one to quiver after hearing an F bomb, but there are points in the movie, where it's used a couple times in a sentence repeatedly. It's not really that big a deal, but all I could think of. But if you don't enjoy cussing, that attribute of the film could turn you off.This movie is amazing, and I urge everyone to see it.

Trying to catch lightning in a bottle once is hard enough, twice is darned near impossible. I liked "Swingers", I thought the balance was pretty good and that made Vince Vaughan effective in his annoyance. "Made" is not as well balanced with Vaughan. It is true you wouldn't have much of a story without his character (a gold medal screw up) but then in order to get the story you have to suffer through a thoroughly overdone taste of Vaughn's idiotic character.I gave 3 stars because there are cast members that redeem parts of this movie and make it thoroughly enjoyable. Peter Falk does a fantastic turn as the lower level crime boss, and even give Vaughn the slightest taste of what I should expect most of the audience would like to give him...short of some violent and brutal death within the first third of the movie. Famke's 'stripper girlfriend' yes is a stereotype portrayed, but she does it awfully well. Special bonus points for getting Michael O'hara to show up in this.And I am sure if you actually like Vaughn's annoying frenzy combined with a humongous yet very fragile ego, then you'll absolutely enjoy this movie.