Thursday, July 29, 2010

Find Me Guilty (2006) - Simply Perfection *****


Find Me Guilty is a movie set in the 1980s where a low-level mobster, Giacomo “Jackie Dee” DiNorscio(played by Vin Diesel) who was sentenced to 30 years in jail for an unrelated drug bust. Not long after, he is given to chance to be a government witness in a case which intends to send an entire family of mobsters to prison. If Jackie agrees, his prison sentence is revoked. However, Jackie is all about “love” and “family” and refuses to rat out on his fellow mobsters.

Very soon, this case is taken to court where this particular family of mobsters are trying to justify themselves against a long list of their crimes. Jackie, who no longer relies on his lawyer who couldn’t even keep him from doing a 30 year sentence, decides to be his own lawyer and represents himself in court. Jackie has no legal background and has no real idea on how to proceed, but still believes he can do a better job. It is this factor that I find the most gripping – a mobster being his own lawyer. It made me want to continue watching.


Jackie is mischievous and vulgar in court and he amuses the jury, but annoys the judge, lawyers, witnesses and occasionally the members of the mob. However, he is effective and gets his point across. At the very end, he manages to save the entire mob from having to do time in prison.

This movie is hilarious, due to the profusion of the jokes and crude gags, and the plot if infallible – but I suppose that is because this movie was based on a real life story. Most of the dialogue in the movie was taken from the original courtroom transcripts and it makes me come to the realisation that yes, this is why the movie is so realistic and that life sometimes really is as dramatic as the movies we watch in the theatres. Find Me Guilty comes from the same mould as other movies based on real life experiences(Catch Me If You Can, Hotel Rwanda), all of which I find are simply amazing.

Find Me Guilty is of the same calibre and certainly does not disappoint. Five stars definitely. And maybe one more star, because it features Vin Diesel with hair, which amuses me to no ends.
By Belle Sim

No comments:

Post a Comment