By Stephen Pytak 

     Starts off with the comic tone of Kevin Smith's 
"Chasing Amy (1997)," then delivers the kind of 
tension you'd find in Quentin Tarantino's 
"Reservoir Dogs (1992)."
     The story is about a prize collection of comic 
books, presumably from the 1940s, 1950s and 
1960s, which are in near mint condition, an old 
woman who inherited them after her son, a 
collector, had died, and the owners of two rival 
comic shops out to get it.
     The couple that owns one of the stores - "Judy 
(Natasha Lyonne)" and "Norman (Michael 
Rapaport)" offers $20,000 for the books.
     Meanwhile the owner of the other store, 
"Raymond (Donal Logue)," a grease ball who 
doesn't have two nickels to rub together, can only 
offer his charm.
     But the old woman, "Mrs. Cresswell (Eileen 
Brennan)," won't sell.
     The shop owners do everything in their power 
to change her mind. They do her chores. They give 
her gifts.
     "I all but went down on the old bitch…" grunts 
Judy.
     But the woman won't budge.
     And the shop owners turn to more desperate 
measures, the way Doctor Octopus or The Leader 
would in a jam.
     But not all of the comic book collectors in this 
film are hungry for the books. Raymond's friend, 
"Archie (D.J. Qualls)" the only objective head in 
the cast, serves as the film's narrator.
     He strikes up a friendship with the old woman 
and proves to her that not all comic collectors waste 
their lives on four-color books and bags and 
boards. He talks about seeing the world and asks 
her questions about her honeymoon in Spain.
     Meanwhile the villains buy guns, plot against 
each other and target the mother lode.  And their 
obsession to steal comics which once sold in stores
for a nickel 
ignites a storm of knives, bullets, nails and fire.
     There are incredibly tense scenes, and if you're 
a comic collector, you'll find your nerves tingling 
with frustration when the books fall into the wrong 
hands.
     When one of the villains picks one up and starts 
reading, Raymond points a gun at him.
     "The moisture from your fingertips are 
devaluing it as we speak," Raymond says. 
     When the smoke clears, not all are left 
standing. 
     But I was. And I was clapping too.
     This is a smart, comic drama which will touch 
a nerve and make you think twice about where 
you hide your comic stash.