The Dukes (2007)

Critic Reviews

• Rafer Guzman, Newsday

  The sweetness grows cloying by the end, but perhaps that's fitting for a film that's so clearly a labor of love.

• James Berardinelli, ReelViews

  The Dukes may be hard to find on the big screen, but it's worth keeping an eye out for once it reaches DVD.

• Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

  Here's the little movie that could, a potent directing debut for actor Robert Davi.

• , New York Magazine

  The old-fashioned story is aided by surprisingly smooth direction, as well as likable performances from Davi himself, Chazz Palmintieri, and a perfectly cast Peter Bogdanovich.

• Kyle Smith, New York Post

  Jokes about a matron at an Italian restaurant and a guy with a thing for fat chicks only take you so far.

• Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News

  [It's] about the kinds of showbiz hangers-on seen in the background of a Scorsese movie, and it feels like those guys decided they were the real stars.

• Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

  Davi, who has the kind of handsomely weathered face that has spent a lot of time gazing into the sun, clearly poured his heart into this movie, and it shows.

• Josh Bell, Las Vegas Weekly

  A meager, low-key dramedy.

• Josh Rosenblatt, Austin Chronicle

  As light as a feather and about as memorable, The Dukes is a pet project all the way, just a lark for Davi and his buddies to star in and screen for one another like a home movie.

• Bob Strauss, Los Angeles Daily News

  A lot of love was clearly poured into this project; too bad the results were only so-so.

• Andy Klein, Los Angeles CityBeat

  Between the performances and the nice visual style, the whole feels greater than the sum of its plot points.

• Ron Wilkinson, Monsters and Critics

  Although it would be great to see Chazz Palminteri break out of the usual tough guy roles and Robert Davi break through into a successful career of writing and directing, this is not the film that does either. Decent viewing for the family but neither th

• Edward Douglas, ComingSoon.net

  Essentially a vanity project, a budget Ocean's 11 for Davi and his pals to sing some doo-wop tunes and ham it up.

• Nathan Rabin, AV Club

  The Dukes could use more music and less sap, but it's refreshing to see a film about the problems of working-class men on the far side of middle age, struggling just to get by.

• John P. McCarthy, Boxoffice Magazine

  A heist comedy with showbiz savvy oozing from its pores.

• Rex Roberts, Film Journal International

  Retro comedy about doo-wop singers hoping for one last score has great harmony, but lacks a catchy beat.

• Mark Holcomb, Time Out New York

  Unforced camaraderie and some effective slapstick save this low-aspiration vehicle from its budgetary shortcomings.

Read all 17 critic reviews