Film Review: “Saint John of Las Vegas”

John Aligheri (Buscemi), a former Vegas high-roller turned insurance company drone, is sent on a fraud investigation with company hotshot Virgil (Malco), and the pair experience an increasingly bizarre series of events as they search for the truth. I wish this movie were a sum of its parts, because the parts sound really good. It’s a modern-day adaptation of Dante’s Inferno starring Buscemi (always a pleaser), Malco, Silverman, Dinklage and Tim Blake Nelson, and set in the Las Vegas desert. Unfortunately, what we get is a disjointed, confusing and disappointing tale. It may have only felt disjointed since my knowledge of the Inferno is shaky at best, but a movie should be able to stand on its own without supplemental materials. Thankfully, a great effort by the cast and several standout scenes, such as one involving a man who is randomly engulfed in flames but just wants a cigarette, make the experience more palatable. It’s never unwatchable, but it’s also nowhere near as good as it should have been. Beatrice, a little help here?