They say imitation is flattery. Sometimes, that may be true. In the case of Smokin Aces (2006), it’s just boring. This movie tries to be a Quentin Tarantino picture, but is anything but. Sure, it dips into gritty and edgy, but it also has the subtlety of a speed freak, and the color grading of a film student music video.

 

If you wanted to say this film had anything going for it, I guess you could say it had a star-studded cast: Ryan Reynolds, Ray Liotta, Ben Affleck, Chris Pine, Common, Alicia Keys, Taraji P. Henson, Matthew Fox, and Jeremy Piven.

 

There’s nothing dazzling here, and most of the gags are groan worthy. It’s hard to even find a compelling plotline here, although some of us found ourselves wishing Alicia Keys had a more prominent role.