Movie Review: The Ladykillers

By Zack Roddy

Joel and Ethan Coen have done it again in their newest comedy venture, The Ladykillers, a retelling of the 1955 critically acclaimed comedy. After becoming well known for their illustrious dramedy, Fargo, the Coens went on to direct such hits like O Brother Where Art Thou? and this year’s comedy smash, Intolerable Cruelty. Now along with Academy Award Winner Tom Hanks (in his first team up with the Coens), they deliver The Ladykillers, a comedy about a group of thieves and a sweet old woman. Also included in the impressive cast are Irma P. Hall, Marlon Wayans, and J.K. Simmons.

In this film, Tom Hanks stars as Goldthwait Higginson Dorr III, a professor who has brought together a gang of thieves to rob a casino boat. They rent a room in the house of a sweet, gospel loving old woman, Marva Munson, played by Hall. The thieves decide to begin a tunnel in the unsuspecting woman’s root cellar, because her property is positioned directly in front of the casino. The excuse: they need a place to practice their church music. But soon Mrs. Munson begins to question their motives. Why doesn’t she hear music? And why do explosions keep coming from her basement? When the suspicious woman stumbles upon their plot and threatens to inform the authorities, the five men decide to kill her. After all, how hard can it be to knock off an old lady?

Tom Hanks by far gives his best performance in this film. His stuttering Prof. Dorr can always get a laugh. Irma P. Hall gives a hilarious performance as well as Mrs. Munson. The funniest person in the film, surprisingly, is Marlon Wayans as Gawain McSam the inside man. Look for his arguing scenes with J.K. Simmons character, Garth Pancake, they are hilarious.

Adding to the fun is the southern style score by Carter Burwell and live church performances. The Coen’s screenplay is fun, adding great wit and dark comedy, including funny dialogue between Hanks and Hall. Each of the murder scenarios are also great. It is hilarious to try and see five grown men try and kill an old woman. It is a definite must-see, far surpassing the original 1955 film. The Ladykillers is rated R for language, including sexual references.