MOVIE REVIEWS - The Family

THE family that slays together stays together - with a degree of reluctance - in Luc Besson’s twisted black comedy based on a book by Tonino Benacquista.
Robert De Niro in The FamilyRobert De Niro in The Family
Robert De Niro in The Family

Punctuated by scenes of cartoonish violence, including an explosive bout of supermarket rage, The Family razes one sleepy corner of Normandy in its ham-fisted pursuit of big bangs and laughs.

It’s a far, desperate cry from the propulsive energy and intense emotions of Besson’s hit man thriller, Leon, which starred Jean Reno and a smouldering, Lolita-esque Natalie Portman.

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The family in question comprises of Fred (Robert De Niro), his long-suffering wife Maggie (Michelle Pfeiffer) and their two children, 17-year-old Belle (Dianna Agron) and 14-year-old Warren (John D’Leo). Like the dysfunctional clan at the film’s blackened heart, The Family pretends to be one thing - a giddy whirl of action, thriller and romance - but turns out to be something else entirely.

My rating 6/10

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