Steven Soderbergh could have made Criminal in his sleep. He didn't, though—he just produced it, along with his pal George Clooney, and gave directing duties to his longtime co-worker Gregory Jacobs, who worked as assistant director on such Soderbergh films as Traffic, Erin Brockovich and Ocean's Eleven. A remake of the Argentinean film Nine Queens, Criminal is a casual stroll through the underworld of con men and hustlers, one that countless filmmakers have explored to its fullest, especially since the success of Pulp Fiction in 1994.
One thing Jacobs does well with his lower profile is cast good character actors in the lead roles. John C. Reilly, Oscar-nominated for his role in 2002's Chicago but still most likely to be referred to as "you know, that guy" by casual viewers, finally gets a juicy starring role as grifter Richard Gaddis, who happens on fellow con artist Rodrigo (Diego Luna) when the latter gets caught pulling a small-time scam in a casino. Posing as a cop, Richard gets Rodrigo out of trouble, rechristens him Brian, and decides to take him on as a combination partner and apprentice.
Over the course of a single day, Richard and Rodrigo pull a series of small scams that lead up to one big score, the sale of a counterfeit piece of rare currency to a rich collector. Naturally, as in any movie of this type, things go wrong, many of them involving Richard's bitter sister Valerie (Maggie Gyllenhaal). There are twists, turns, double-crosses and a surprise ending. Of course, the real surprise would be if there weren't twists, turns, double- crosses and a surprise ending, but that's much too tall an order for this type of film.
Reilly, known for his sad-sack roles, brings a nice sense of melancholy to the brash Richard, and Luna, the star of the Mexican Y Tu Mama Tambien, has a wonderful, innocent charm that is perfect for Rodrigo. Jacobs directs like his mentor, who also lends a hand in the screenwriting department under a pseudonym, but the result is nothing more than Soderbergh Lite. Jacobs doesn't add anything new to the genre, but his version of taking the concepts out for a walk is entertaining enough to mark time until Ocean's Twelve.