Why do I like DISORGANIZED CRIME so much? Why do I chuckle or laugh out
loud any time I think of a dozen or more scenes from this movie? It's kind of
hard to explain, but I'll give it a try.
First of all, it's very funny indeed - in contrast to what lots of "official"
reviews want you to believe. But then again, that depends entirely on your
sense of humour, so there is no sense in arguing about that. Often the humour
is in the dialogue, and often it is situational comedy. There is for instance
this very hilarious scene in which the 4 gang members have been given a lift
in the back of a truck. When the farmer drops them, they just stand there by
the road, covered all over with cow shit or whatever. They are totally
unnerved; then, realizing the humour of the scene, they one by one start
laughing about themselves, and Ruben Blades (as Carlos), looking (and
certainly smelling) terrible, nonchalantly takes out some mouth spray to at
least do something about his breath (simply de-scribing the scene here makes
me chuckle again!).
Which leads to the second point: the acting. Fred Gwynne, Lou Diamond
Phillips, William Russ, Ruben Blades and Corbin Bernsen (okay, the latter
overdoes it a bit at times) all fit and play their parts beautifully - in fact,
you get the feeling they must have been enjoying themselves too when shooting
the film.
Thirdly, there is the plot . Jim Kouf, the director and screenwriter, is
very laid-back; he takes his time to let the plot unfold and have the
individual characters establish themselves. More often than not, there is no
real action, and yet you enjoy these 4 very different people - who attempt to
rob a bank although their boss (Bernsen) does not seem to turn up - grumble
about each other and even-tually, grudgingly, like each other.
The movie is a fantastic parody of the typical bankrobbery plot -
totally impossible with all its twists and coincidences, yet utterly
convincing in its love for ironic details.
Incidentally, the title of the film is one of the best I have ever
come across, because it perfectly summarizes the plot in a very ironic way.
Therefore, take my advice: watch this film, but if you don't chuckle, grin or
smile during the first 10 minutes, forget it - it's not your type of film.