Ordinary Decent Criminal Details

A thinly veiled attempt to retell the story of real-life Irish criminal Martin Cahill, the subject of John Boorman's critically acclaimed The General. This time Kevin Spacey plays Cahill (here renamed Michael Lynch), the cocky Dublin gangster who spends his days robbing the rich, annoying the police and falling foul of the IRA before going home to his wife (Linda Fiorentino) and her sister (Helen Baxendale). Director Thaddeus O'Sullivan gives his star every possible moment of screen time, which is no bad thing for Spacey fans. However, anyone who has seen The General or knows about the man on whom Michael is based will bristle at his transformation into a lovable rogue who likes nothing better than flashing his naked bum at nasty, irritating policemen. This would have worked much better as a work of fiction, but it's still worth seeing thanks to another powerhouse performance from one of the most talented actors working in film today (dodgy accent notwithstanding).

Partly based on the true-life exploits of Martin Cahill, this is a run-of-the-mill thriller with some unconvincing casting.