Rating: 
Summary: A smart, fun misfit crime caper
Review: "Welcome to Collinwood" is a small, simple but fun story of misfit criminals trying to land the heist of a lifetime.Sure this is a story we've all seen before, but "Welcome to Collinwood" is a wonderfully scripted and acted film that avoids tired clichés. It feels new, like something we've never seen before despite the truth, and that's the mark of a good film. The excellent cast is what really helps move along the good script treatment. William H. Macy is, as always, a great addition, but it's Sam Rockwell and the late Michael Jeter that really stand out. I happened to watch this for the first time the day I found out Jeter died, and his fantastic off-the-wall character, a trademark of his, made me realize just how much I will miss his film presence. This is just a smart little indie film that, while not particularly memorable, is plenty of fun and is much better then much of the schlock Hollywood throws together. Definitely worth a rental, and maybe more if you love those quirky little crime films.
Rating: 
Summary: Stick with the original!
Review: I didn't even want to give this movie 1 star. I reccomend that all of you avoid this movie like the plague. I hope every actor in this film never gets to star in another film. This film is a pathetic recreation one of my favorite films "Big Deal on Madonna St." Not one moment "Weclome to Collingwood" was pleasant to me. Why? Cause everything about it was poorly excecuted and cheap. The worst part of all of it was poor delivery of the jokes in the film. I didn't even laugh once. Watching this film was like watching a street vendor sell fake Gucci bags and Bolex watches.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing Comedy
Review: I seem to be in a minority here, but I honestly did not find Welcome To Collinwood funny at all. I was looking forward watching and enjoying the film though, since the trailer offered so much promise, but as I came to expect from a lot of movies, unfortunately what you watch in the trailers are the best bits of the film!
The problem with Welcome to Collinwood (a gang of 'idiots planning to pull off a big heist, called bellini) is not the acting, since all the cast is made of fine actors, especially William Macy, so the blame falls firmly on the script.It has more holes than swiss cheese, and the laughter is as sparse as Siberian nighclubs!The main problems with the script lies in the following,
The characters are just too caricaturized, without funny dialogue. The 'silliness' of the too many characters are just too overblown, without it being a parody a la Top Secert or Naked Gun.
The character of the always excellent Luiz Guzman was central to the whole plot, but then when he escapes jail and vowes revenge for cutting him out of his 'bellini',I expected to see more of him later, but he just totally disappeared from the movie without any explanation!!!
The character of the sexy Jennifer Esposito was too shallow, and I really did expect a certain twist, or surprise from her, which alas did not happen. The fact that she is loose (or liberated) and has too many boyfriends at the same time, even inviting two of them to the same party which results in a fight, was just over emphasized in an annoying sort of way.
George Clooney's cameo was in my opinion unnecessary. His presence surely would attract more viewers, but his scenes did not add anything to the movie, and it would maybe have worked better, had these scenes been replaced by more 'misadventures' of the gang.
Brother directors/filmmakers have been quite a 'hip' phenomenon in Hollywood ever since the Coen bothers shot their masterpiece Blood Simple, and we have seen many such teams so far, like the Farley and Hughes brothers, and the Russos are yet another siblings team.(I was thinking Welcome to Collinwood was mediocre with two directors, what would it be like with one??)
If you want 'idiots pulling a hiest' movie then The Apple Dumpling Gang with genuis performances by Don Knotts and Tim Conway is still the best, although it has a 'kiddie' 'Sunday afternoon' tag to it, it is still a very funny film for all, and forget about Welcome to Collinwood. But if you are still interested to check it out then watch the trailer,trust me it is enough.
Rating:
Summary: Laughed Out Loud!
Review: I was delighted to find some of my favorite actors together in this film: Luis Guzman: Michael Jeter (who recently died)and William Macy. Luis is a scary-looking dude--that was the first thing I noticed about him--but he is a good actor. His reply to anyone he's mad at in this is "Your mother is a w_____! For some reason, I found that hilarious. Then at the end they say about his character--"poor guy, his mother was a w_____."
The movie has a lot of physical comedy that is well-done. Michael Jeter is such a natural--he is a pleasure to watch. (See "The Green Mile.") William Macy carrying that darling baby around with him added a quaint touch.
This movie will surprise you.
Rating: 
Summary: A great film on several levels
Review: Loving misfit comedies as I do ... (OK, loving George Clooney as I do) ... and being from Collinwood myself long ago, I decided to check out Welcome to Collinwood.
Bad news first ... I was disappointed in Clooney's role. Good news ... that was all I was disappointed in. THis movie was a laugh riot from beginning to end while at the same time conveying an endearing pathos. This is the first time I have ever seen a criminal caper movie and felt sorry for and touched by the lives of the criminals, even while I was laughing MAO. These guys "punch through" the problems in their lives with interesting results. Jeter and Macy are fantastic and if you ever wondered what was Sam Rockwells breakout role, this is it.
I was born and raised in Collinwood in the 60's, and attended OH Perry school as a kid. This is not the Slavinian-rich neighborhood I remember but I guess nothing stays the same in this life, not even Cleveland. Check out this unique movie about my old neighborhood, you'll be glad you did.
Rating:
Summary: Stick with the original!
Review: Probably not too many viewers realize that 'Welcome to Collinwood' is a remake of a brilliantly funny Italian movie 'Big Deal on Madonna Street'. Unfortunately, the features that made the original sparkle (great characters depicted with love and care), are not present in 'Welcome to Collinwood'. What's left is an uninspired mess. The characters that were supposed to represent the Italian soul were not successfully transformed to American soil. Instead, they were shamelessly copied from the original. As a result, the characters and many scenes in 'Welcome to Collinwood' do not make sense and look contrived.
Rating:
Summary: Welcome to Palookaville; Delightful Heist Spoof
Review: This "small-heist-went-terribly-awry" film has its own charm, which might or might not appeal to you. It is not the story that counts; it's the characters you enjoy watching, and the terrific cast give this light-weight film some good reason for you to watch. The film's opening scene should not be missed; four guys in tattered and sooty clothes standing in the street, all staring vacantly in the air. What happened to them? The film goes back to the chain of events leading up to the first moment.
And the story is simple; Cosimo (Luiz Guzman) hears a story about a big deal from the guy in jail. The deal of stealing from a jewelry shop, and Cosimo knows how to break in there. Cosimo tells it to his love Rosalind, who tells it to another, who tells ... and finally, five guys in Colinwood get together around the plan. Now let me introduce these lovable guys. They are: down-and-out boxer Pero (Sam Rockwell, great as usual); Riley, failed artist who had to sell his camera to buy diapers (William H. Macy, never better with Mel Gibson-like sideburns); Leon, Dandy of Colinwood (Isaiah Washington); Toto, too kind and too old maybe for the job (Michael Jeter): and Basil, who falls in love with the sister of his buddy Leon at first sight (Andrew Davoli). And they are all broke. You got also the cameo of cast-against-type George Clooney (see his disguise), and Gabrielle Union ("Bring it on"). The film's approach to the material is downplayed, so the humor is the kind of what you call 'dead-pan' or "off-beat.' You might not find the film not so amusing. After all, potentially the film is talking about the losers who remain losers. They are likable in spite of (and because of) their utter silliness, and their silliness is mingled with sadness. But that is exactly the charm of the film. To realize this, the actors did splendid job, especially Macy, Rockwell and Jeter. Another merit of the film is its music by Mark Mothersbaugh, ex-"DEVO." His bouncing jazzy guitar music gives another joy for watching the film. "Welcome to Colinwood" is, as its credit shows, a remake of Italian film "I Soliti Igonoti," usually called Vittorio Gassman's "Big Deal on Madonna Street." This old-Italian film, itself a parody of noir genre, has already spawned several similar films -- such as "Palookaville" and "Crackers." Compare them with "WTC."
Rating:
Summary: Welcome to Palookaville; Delightful Heist Spoof
Review: This "small-heist-went-terribly-awry" film has its own charm, which might or might not appeal to you. It is not the story that counts; it's the characters you enjoy watching, and the terrific cast give this light-weight film some good reason for you to watch. The film's opening scene should not be missed; four guys in tattered and sooty clothes standing in the street, all staring vacantly in the air. What happened to them? The film goes back to the chain of events leading up to the first moment.
And the story is simple; Cosimo (Luiz Guzman) hears a story about a big deal from the guy in jail. The deal of stealing from a jewelry shop, and Cosimo knows how to break in there. Cosimo tells it to his love Rosalind, who tells it to another, who tells ... and finally, five guys in Colinwood get together around the plan. Now let me introduce these lovable guys. They are: down-and-out boxer Pero (Sam Rockwell, great as usual); Riley, failed artist who had to sell his camera to buy diapers (William H. Macy, never better with Mel Gibson-like sideburns); Leon, Dandy of Colinwood (Isaiah Washington); Toto, too kind and too old maybe for the job (Michael Jeter): and Basil, who falls in love with the sister of his buddy Leon at first sight (Andrew Davoli). And they are all broke. You got also the cameo of cast-against-type George Clooney (see his disguise), and Gabrielle Union ("Bring it on"). The film's approach to the material is downplayed, so the humor is the kind of what you call 'dead-pan' or "off-beat.' You might not find the film not so amusing. After all, potentially the film is talking about the losers who remain losers. They are likable in spite of (and because of) their utter silliness, and their silliness is mingled with sadness. But that is exactly the charm of the film. To realize this, the actors did splendid job, especially Macy, Rockwell and Jeter. Another merit of the film is its music by Mark Mothersbaugh, ex-"DEVO." His bouncing jazzy guitar music gives another joy for watching the film. "Welcome to Colinwood" is, as its credit shows, a remake of Italian film "I Soliti Igonoti," usually called Vittorio Gassman's "Big Deal on Madonna Street." This old-Italian film, itself a parody of noir genre, has already spawned several similar films -- such as "Palookaville" and "Crackers." Compare them with "WTC."
Rating:
Summary: Welcome to Palookaville; Delightful Heist Spoof
Review: This "small-heist-went-terribly-awry" film has its own charm, which might or might not appeal to you. It is not the story that counts; it's the characters you enjoy watching, and the terrific cast give this light-weight film some good reason for you to watch. The film's opening scene should not be missed; four guys in tattered and sooty clothes standing in the street, all staring vacantly in the air. What happened to them? The film goes back to the chain of events leading up to the first moment.
And the story is simple; Cosimo (Luiz Guzman) hears a story about a big deal from the guy in jail. The deal of stealing from a jewelry shop, and Cosimo knows how to break in there. Cosimo tells it to his love Rosalind, who tells it to another, who tells ... and finally, five guys in Colinwood get together around the plan. Now let me introduce these lovable guys. They are: down-and-out boxer Pero (Sam Rockwell, great as usual); Riley, failed artist who had to sell his camera to buy diapers (William H. Macy, never better with Mel Gibson-like sideburns); Leon, Dandy of Colinwood (Isaiah Washington); Toto, too kind and too old maybe for the job (Michael Jeter): and Basil, who falls in love with the sister of his buddy Leon at first sight (Andrew Davoli). And they are all broke. You got also the cameo of cast-against-type George Clooney (see his disguise), and Gabrielle Union ("Bring it on"). The film's approach to the material is downplayed, so the humor is the kind of what you call 'dead-pan' or "off-beat.' You might not find the film not so amusing. After all, potentially the film is talking about the losers who remain losers. They are likable in spite of (and because of) their utter silliness, and their silliness is mingled with sadness. But that is exactly the charm of the film. To realize this, the actors did splendid job, especially Macy, Rockwell and Jeter. Another merit of the film is its music by Mark Mothersbaugh, ex-"DEVO." His bouncing jazzy guitar music gives another joy for watching the film. "Welcome to Colinwood" is, as its credit shows, a remake of Italian film "I Soliti Igonoti," usually called Vittorio Gassman's "Big Deal on Madonna Street." This old-Italian film, itself a parody of noir genre, has already spawned several similar films -- such as "Palookaville" and "Crackers." Compare them with "WTC."
Rating:
Summary: Five guys. One safe. No brains.
Review: What a great little movie. I had never heard of this, but it popped up on my recommendations and got good reviews, so I gave it a try. This so much reminded me of Donald Westlake's comic crime caper novels. A great little story with plenty of laughs. The plot involves a group of low rent, misfit criminals trying to pull of a heist of a lifetime, or as the call it, their 'Bellini'. Well, complications occur, problems arise, and the whole thing gets rather messy. William H. Macy is great along with Isaiah Washington, Sam Rockwell, Michael Jeter, and Luis Guzman. A great ensemble cast in a highly enjoyable, funny movie. A sad note, I had heard Michael Jeter died recently, which is quite sad. I thought he was great in the Green Mile.
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