Benjamin's Stash: Video Pick of the Week

      Hello, readers. Riddick opens this Friday in theaters, so this week's pick will be devoted to a Vin Diesel film out of my collection... Wait... what? Rewind that... noitcelloc ym fo tuo mlif leseiD niV a ot detoved eb lliw kcip s'keew siht... this week's pick will be devoted to a Vin Diesel film out of my collection. Yep, granted, choosing which film to pick was rather easy. It's essentially two films, and I decided not to go with Saving Private Ryan since he's hardly in it. I decided to go with the other, a film that fell way under the radar in comparison to his other films. Sorry, Fast & Furious fans. It's not your day.

      Find Me Guilty is based on the true story of the longest Mafia trial in American history, The United States vs. Anthony Accetturo et al. Mobster Jackie DiNorscio (Vin Diesel) is already serving a thirty year prison sentence when he is offered a reduced sentence from district attorney Sean Kierney (Linus Roache) in exchange for DiNorscio's testimony against the Lucchese family. Jackie turns down the offer though, stating that he is not a rat. Instead, DiNorscio decides to defend himself in court when he is implicated along with the other mobsters, despite having absolutely no legal background or knowledge of how to proceed in court.

      Obviously, I'm not a Vin Diesel fan. I mean, who really gets a kick out of seeing him play the same low-mumbling hulk we see him as film after film after film? That said, every movie gets a fair shot, and this really showed me that in the right role, with the right script and director, Diesel can deliver a strong performance. It's really an entertaining performance and one that separates itself from anything else Diesel has done before. DiNorscio is quite an interesting character. From a legal standpoint, he hasn't the slightest clue. If only he had known that "A man that defends himself has a fool for a client". He irritates the lawyers, the witnesses, the defendants and the judge, but boy does he charm the hell out of the jury. In some ways, you could argue that being a pretty solid strategy. The film's greatest strength, though, was the man behind the camera - Sidney Lumet. Last week, another film of his, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, made it on this segment. If you've ever seen 12 Angry Men (easily a top 3 film of Lumet's, if not his best ever) Serpico, or The Verdict, Lumet knew courtroom drama better than anyone else and always brought out the best in his cast. Who better to bring so much potential out of Diesel better than one of the greatest directors to have ever lived? Along with Vin Diesel, there's an equally strong supporting cast featuring Linus Roache, Peter Dinklage, Annabella Sciorra (who shares a great moment with Diesel), and the late, underrated actor Ron Silver. It's not a tense and exciting courtroom drama like A Few Good Men, but it's not meant to be either. What we see is absurdity, which is the film's intention, and it results in an entertaining time for the viewer.