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Mafia Mamma is a film directed by Catherine Hardwicke starring the “almost” always great Toni Collette and Monica Bellucci, and this time, as great and wonderful as they are, they don’t manage to save a comedy with jokes that don’t end up being funny.

Bad start for a comedy, don’t you think?

Mafia Mamma Movie Review

Mafia Mamma is a parody crime thriller that without wanting to go anywhere and aware of this circumstance, limits itself to overflow with clichés (it was obvious), to drop more or less funny jokes and that relies on the two stars’ performances (especially Toni Collette’s) to save the movie from sinking.

And no matter how great he or she could be, no actor can save a bad script nor, dare we say, a bad editing at the level of rhythm. Thus, Mafia Mamma is sometimes placed in almost separate scenes without a common nexus that,...

Hmmm, now this is a strange bit of film release synergy. Now the big studio-wide release this weekend is Renfield which can be called a horror/comedy hybrid (though it’s also an action thriller satire). The other small studio flick also blends comedy with another very popular genre, crime. To be more specific it’s a crime-family comedy, hence the use of that “reviled” (to some) word. Oh, and there’s a “gender-switch” as a woman takes the seat at the head of the table for the “sit-down”. Hey, if there can be a godfather, then why not a Mafia Mamma?

The story kicks into high gear “across the pond” in the “old country”, Italy, soon after a gun battle that produces lots of casualties for both warring factions. This prompts a long-distance phone call from the Balbano family “advisor” Bianca (Monica Bellucci) to a relative in the States,...

Mafia Mamma coulda been a contender, a sharp idea to throw an unsuspecting wife, mother and frustrated businesswoman into a new life as the head of an Italian crime family. Instead, though blessed to have the wonderful Toni Collette in the title role, it becomes a pasta with too many ingredients. This is not to say general audiences won’t be pleased, but this is a movie that feels like we have seen it too many times before. You certainly will have a few laughs, admire the Roman scenery and root for Collette’s success, but it is pretty mild when it should have been wickedly smart with this kind of premise. Married to the Mob it is not.

Collette plays Kristin Balbano Jordan, an American in the midst of a life crisis. Her only son Domenick (Tommy Rodger) is going off to college, she catches her deadbeat husband Paul...

You never want bad films to happen to great actors, but every once in a while one of your favorites inevitably turns up in an unfortunate and miscalculated clunker. Sadly, Catherine Hardwicke’s “Mafia Mamma” is that movie for Toni Collette. While she is one of the most fearless and versatile actors working today, Collette looks somewhat lost here as the story’s accidental crime boss on a quest to, well, “Eat Pray F*ck” (as one character in the film so elegantly puts it).

Despite having directed a fiercely diverse slate of genre-spanning blockbusters and indies across TV and the big screen—she’s done everything from “Thirteen,” to “Twilight” and “Miss Bala”— even Hardwicke seems a little bewildered in a script jointly penned by Michael J. Feldman and Debbie Jhoon, based on an original story by Amanda Sthers.

Collette plays Kristin, a sunny and frantic Californian with a college-aged son,...

Though “The Godfather” is referenced a few times in “Mafia Mamma,” a fluffy comedy starring Toni Collette as a reluctant mob boss, the lack of direct quotes seems like a missed opportunity. There’s no “make her an offer she can’t refuse” joke, for instance, the moment American mom Kristin (Collette) is strong-armed into inheriting one of Italy’s most powerful crime families. And while Kristin’s arc perfectly matches the sentiment of “great men are not born great, they grow great,” this slam dunk was passed up for a more generalized approach.

The frivolous slapstick and unique premise of “Mafia Mamma” has much more in common with “Analyze This” than it does “The Godfather,” though the execution is not as clever. Directed by Catherine Hardwicke (“Thirteen”) from a script by J. Michael Feldman and Debbie Jhoon with story credit to Amanda Sthers, “Mafia Mamma” tried to fit a...

Bleecker Street has launched a new trailer for the action-packed comedy ‘Mafia Mamma’

Catherine Hardwicke’s latest is about a suburban American woman who inherits her grandfather’s Mafia empire, and guided by the Firm’s trusted consigliere defies everyone’s expectations, including her own, as the new head of the family business.

Collette plays the American woman who suddenly inherits her estranged grandfather’s Italian Mafia empire and must manage the family business – making her a target of rival gangs.

Toni Collette, Monica Bellucci, Giulio Corso, Francesco Mastroianni, Alfonso Perugini and more star.

Also in trailers – Trailer enters the building for Netflix animation ‘Agent Elvis’

The movie is set to hit U.S. cinemas on April 14th.

The post Toni Collette & Monica Bellucci star in trailer for comedy ‘Mafia Mamma’ appeared first on HeyUGuys.

Toni Collette finds herself thrust into the thick of a mob war in the new trailer for Mafia Mamma, set to hit theaters on April 14.

The film boasts an extremely/endearingly silly premise: Collette plays a suburban housewife named Kristin who leaves her philandering husband to fly to Italy for the funeral of her estranged grandfather, only to learn that his dying wish was for her to succeed him as the new boss of the Balbano crime family. Obviously, only one thing can ensue from such a setup, and you...

"I am tired of this war... My family is tired of this war." Bleecker Street has debuted the full official trailer for an action comedy set in Italy titled Mafia Mamma, the latest film by director Catherine Hardwicke - who hasn't made a new feature since Miss Bala in 2018. The original teaser from last year is much better, as this trailer plays up the jokes and very few of them land. Hardwicke’s new action-comedy, Mafia Mamma, starring Toni Collette and Monica Bellucci. An American woman who inherits her grandfather's "Mafia empire," and guided by the Firm's trusted consigliere, defies everyone's expectations – including her own – as the new head of the family business. It's now set to open in US theaters this April. The cast includes Alfonso Perugini, Giulio Corso, and Alessandro Bressanello. Maybe this would be better if it was a red band trailer? Looks bad, not even funny,...

“Under the Tuscan Sun” meets “The Godfather” in the latest comedy from multi-hyphenate Toni Collette.

The “Hereditary” star plays an insecure American who inherits her grandfather’s mafia empire in Italy in “Mafia Mamma,” directed by Catherine Hardwicke. Guided by the firm’s trusted consigliere (Monica Bellucci), Collette hilariously defies everyone’s expectations, including her own, as the new head of the family business.

Giulio Corso, Francesco Mastroianni, Alfonso Perugini, Sophia Nomvete, Eduardo Scarpetta, Tim Daish, and Tommy Rodger also star.

Hardwicke directs from a script by Michael J. Feldman and Debbie Jhoon. Lead star Collette produces along with Christopher Simon and Amanda Sthers.

Hardwicke previously told IndieWire’s Kate Erbland that she strives to emphasize “complex female characters” onscreen.

“I think now, as women, we want to see somebody that takes charge of their life and does the very best they can in their power to escape, fight back,...

"You can't run away from your destiny!" You must embrace the mafia. Ha! Bleecker Street has revealed a first look teaser trailer for the action comedy set in Italy titled Mafia Mamma, the latest film by director Catherine Hardwicke - who hasn't made a new feature since Miss Bala in 2018. This one is now set to drop in Spring 2023, and this first teaser is red band rated as it's packed with tons of foul language. Hardwicke’s new action-comedy, Mafia Mamma, starring Toni Collette and Monica Bellucci - a suburban American woman who inherits her grandfather's "Mafia empire," and guided by the Firm's trusted consigliere, defies everyone's expectations – including her own – as the new head of the family business. The cast also includes Alfonso Perugini, Giulio Corso, and Alessandro Bressanello. This looks hilarious! I don't think this kind of wacky concept would work as well without Toni Collette leading the way.