Product Details

• Actors: George Clooney, Sam Rockwell, William H. Macy, Isaiah Washington, Michael Jeter
• Directors: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
• Writers: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
• Producers: George Clooney, Ben Cosgrove, Casey La Scala, Hendrik Hey
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• VHS Release Date: March 18, 2003
• Run Time: 86 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0000897E7
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #313,243 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

A nifty little film about a gang of would-be crooks and a heist that goes awry. That probably sounds like a premise you've seen about a hundred times in the past few years, but Welcome to Collinwood rises above most other caper movies due to a strong script, clean and inventive direction, and above all an outstanding cast: Sam Rockwell (Galaxy Quest, Safe Men), William H. Macy (Fargo, State and Main), Isaiah Washington (Clockers, Out of Sight), Luis Guzmán (The Limey, Punch-Drunk Love), Jennifer Esposito (Summer of Sam, Shaft), Patricia Clarkson (High Art, Joe Gould's Secret), and several other great character actors have such chemistry, wit, and sheer talent that it's a pleasure to watch them scheme, wriggle, and woo each other through an elaborate plan that's doomed from the start. George Clooney also appears (and coproduced the movie). Smart and charming. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great film on several levels, July 21, 2004

By 

Robin Houchens - See all my reviews

This review is from: Welcome to Collinwood (DVD)

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.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Welcome to Palookaville; Delightful Heist Spoof, October 14, 2003

By 

Tsuyoshi (Kyoto, Japan) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Welcome to Collinwood [VHS] (VHS Tape)

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."

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Laughed Out Loud!, June 12, 2004

By 

Grndtea "righter7" (Pittsburgh, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Welcome to Collinwood (DVD)

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.