Three stars out of
five
Running Time: 86 mins
Frequently amusing comedy that succeeds largely due to the appeal of its two leads.
High Heels and Low Lifes would dearly love to be a sort of ‘Thelma and
Louise Go Lock, Stock’ and no doubt that’s how it was pitched to salivating Brit pic financiers.
Ultimately, it doesn’t really stand up to either of the above, but that doesn’t stop it being a frequently amusing little film in its own right.
Minnie Driver plays good-hearted, over-worked nurse Shannon, and Mary
McCormack (who may be familiar as Howard Stern’s wife in Private Parts)
plays her feisty American wannabe-actress friend Frances.
One drunken night, they accidentally overhear the details of a bank robbery being committed on their street, and when the police won’t pay any attention to them, they decide to blackmail the criminals for a share of the loot. Naturally, they don’t realise who they’re dealing with and Comedy Ensues…
That High Heels and Low Lifes works as well as it does is largely due to the winning appeal of its two central leads – Driver and McCormack work very well together as a comedy duo and you genuinely believe in their friendship and root for them accordingly.
Luckily, due care and attention has also been paid to the other parts, including Kevin McNally as Mason (Mr Big) and Michael Gambon as Kerrigan (Mr Even Bigger), as well as The Fast Show’s Mark Little and cult TV actor Kevin Eldon (you’ll know the face) as two scene-stealing cops, one of whom is obsessed with real estate prices.