Comeuppance Reviews
"Played" was a decent crime thriller despite it's budget shortcomings.The plot: Ray (Rossi) is a small-time thief who is framed for a crime he didn't commit. When he gets out of jail, he falls back into the same life.The budget for this movie was $338,000, so I understand why it was shot on video instead of film. I was worried about that because the usual Lionsgate (shot on video) output is usually terrible ("Green River killer", "Heebie Jeebies"). It actually looks good in most scenes.Mick Rossi does a fine job as Ray. But the big name stars are only in this for maybe five minutes each. Kilmer does his usual professional work. His dialogue was improvised and it shows. ("You're not gonna Taco, Ray.") Jones plays a good bad guy. Byrne appears stiff and looks like he wants to be anywhere else. I also noticed that almost all the actors are on the phone. It's pretty cheap just to shoot actors talking on a phone.Overall, "Played" was a satisfactory crime flick, that's a good second or third choice at the video store.For more insanity, please visit: comeuppancereviews.com
mauricemurray
Finally managed to buy a copy from Amazon as its not been released in the UK yet. Good plot with more twists and turns than the Big One roller-coaster in Blackpool. A Gangster film that shows the double dealing and lack of respect for human life that is a true mirror of the criminal world. The amazing point to make about this film is Mick Rossi managed to put together so many big names in the movie world with virtually no budget. Some facts about Played... Val Kilmer and his ex wife Joanne Whalley both appear in the film. It proved to be Bruno Kirbys last film as he passed away shortly after.... Well worth getting hold of a copy. Mr. Rossi you done Manchester proud. I give it a massive 10/10 because it shows what can be achieved if your heart is in it and not just your money.
primus7
This is definitely scraping the barrel. The filming is more than substandard. Don't get me wrong, I am not into real pretty Hollywood cinematography and special effects for the sake of a good storyline. However the storyline is awfully weak and seems like so many of the films that were to come after "Lock Stock and 2 Smoking Barrels". Just this one fails and fails miserably. The inclusion of some relatively well known actors must have been a coup for the Director and the film investors, as I am sure that most people would have been suckered into thinking that it must have some credibility. In the words of Dillon (Val Kilmer): Someone should have "Taco'd" this movie before release.
plastik-fantastik
Beware,this is a real pretender.You see Vinnie Jones and Gabriel Byrne on the poster and you see Val Kilmer is in it too,so it looks all good but then the film starts,shows the actors in alphabetic order and at the end it says:Introducing Mick Rossi.So that's what you get to see,about 88 minutes with Mick Rossi and about 1 minute Gabriel Byrnes and about 2 minutes Val Kilmer,only one who's featured a bit more is Vinnie Jones.So if you want to see a true Mick Rossi film (probably the only one he ever will have a leading part in),check it out,otherwise beware.The story is average too.Mick plays a small time gangster who got a job from the big boys which gets him into lots of trouble.
AD
