Riff Raff (2025) Review!!

Synopsis – A former criminal’s ordinary life, which is turned upside down when his old family shows up for a long-awaited reunion.

My Take – A dark comedy with an ensemble cast that includes the likes of Bill Murray, Ed Harris, Jennifer Coolidge, Gabrielle Union, Pete Davidson, and Lewis Pullman, will sound immediately like an exciting pitch for any cinephile. Add to that a holiday setting, the film will seem to contain all the makings for a great experience.

However, this latest from director Dito Montiel, who remains best known for his 2006 autobiographical first feature, A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, has little thrills or humor, leaving us with a feeling like there was plenty left to be still done. Despite establishing potentially fun and explosive dynamics early on, writer John Pollono‘s screenplay takes a long, drawn-out approach to the story, with quite a few detours along the way that mostly amount to nothing.

For some reason, there is such a nonchalant quality to the narrative that mostly plays like a greatest hits of been-there-done-that crime tropes, that nothing ever really creates much impact. Most surprisingly, even with the talent involved, the film is sparse with comedy.

Sure, some light chuckles arrive here and there, but generally the film wobbles awkwardly between a creeping mob thriller and a scrappy sitcom, inching toward a predictable violent climax with a little twist, that doesn’t land as intended.

Simply told, this is a very middle-of-the-road attempt with bleak comedic overtones, and with a cast this accomplished, I guess, it was reasonable to have expected something better. Personally, I am very surprised how this script even drew such an eclectic and well-rounded cast.

The story mostly follows DJ (Miles J. Harvey), a meek teenager who is still nursing from a heart break, and is spending the winter break in a cabin before he goes off to college with this mother, Sandy (Gabrielle Union), and his step-father, Vincent (Ed Harris). Unlike what is expected, DJ and Vincent actually get along exceptionally well and cheekily even discuss private matters of romance, something of which Sandy disapproves.

However, their fun family dynamic is interrupted by the sudden, late-night arrival of Vincent’s older, estrange, rabble-rousing son Rocco (Lewis Pullman), his sweet, pregnant Italian girlfriend Marina (Emanuela Postacchini), and his passed-out mother Ruth (Jennifer Coolidge), i.e. Vincent’s foul-mouthed, filter-less ex. Claiming to have shown up to celebrate the new year with family.

But Vincent is immediately suspicious that Rocco is in some kind of trouble. Particularly, with people from his past life. Someone like, Leftie (Bill Murray), a violent mafioso who along with his young, well-dressed associate Lonnie (Pete Davidson) has embarked on a road trip towards them.

From there on the film cross-cuts between a hit & miss adjustment of manners for this estranged blended family, a road trip comedy between Leftie and Lonny as they make their way up the coast, and a set of flashbacks that fill in exposition details.

Yes, the two halves of Vincent’s family life come crashing together, resulting in interactions that are initially amusing, since they all come from a place of broad caricature buoyed by insecurity. But while the characters themselves are almost likable, but the overarching story is simply lacking and nothing we haven’t seen before.

There are small touches of tongue-in-cheek humor throughout like: a document repeatedly referred to as a highly detailed topographical map is literally labeled highly detailed topographical map; yet, these are more stated than felt. Mainly, as the narration is inconsistently deployed and fails to truly root the film in his perspective, adding to its incoherent tone and overall sloppy execution. The film’s final monologue attempts to paint the whole film as a parable about messy families.

But really, the only thing the film’s bloody finale accomplishes is illustrate just how violent, literally, the concept of “the one” is. In fact it works so well as a punchline, it makes it even more bizarre that the filmmakers didn’t bother to find a better way to set up the deconstruction of that concept earlier. The holiday setting is also largely underutilized, as if the only reason to set it at New Year’s was to save money on decorations.

As one would expect, performance wise, Ed Harris can still command attention, irrespective of the role he plays, and Gabrielle Union is consistently on-point. However, their chemistry is practically non-existent. Jennifer Coolidge continues to play the staple drunk, horny, and messy type with energy and aplomb. Miles J. Harvey is passable enough, considering he has surprisingly little in way of a character arc. He’s merely a hapless observer watching the others self-destruct, which might have worked if he was anywhere near as endearing as the script wants him to be.

Lewis Pullman and Emanuela Postacchini bring a lot of energy with their presence, even though they both are riddled with most cliché of characters. Undoubtedly, Bill Murray and Pete Davidson are the best part of the film. They have a very fun dynamic and I would have preferred just watching these two on a road trips. While Davidson is good, Murray is fantastic and is easily the most unlikable he’s been in years, making for some intriguing casting.

Surprisingly, Michael Covino whose character is the catalyst for the whole sordid affair, is afforded the most complexity, with a truly tragic streak layered into his toxic masculinity. Tasked with the least comedic role, Covino excels at imbuing his character with enough nuance to transcend the script’s stereotyped trappings. An extended sequence with P.J. Byrne and Brooke Dillman is also a highlight. On the whole, ‘Riff Raff‘ is a stale crime comedy tale that wastes its stellar cast with a tired narrative.