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'Find Me Guilty': Unlikely pair create guilty pleasure

Vin Diesel and Sidney Lumet. Now there are two names you never expected to see in the same sentence.

But sure enough, the mouth-breathing star of The Fast and the Furious and the veteran director of countless social dramas have indeed teamed up for Find Me Guilty, the story of a mob trial so ludicrous that it has to be true.

Yari Film Group 'Find Me Guilty' B The verdict: A tongue-in-cheek mob trial with Diesel acquitting himself as an actor. Director: Sidney Lumet Starring: Vin Diesel, Peter Dinklage, Annabella Sciorra, Richard Portnow, Linus Roache Run time: 125 minutes Release date: March 17, 2006 Rating: R for strong language and some violence. See showtimes On the web Official movie site View the trailer    Trailers require Quicktime [an error occurred while processing this directive]

Not surprisingly, Diesel gains more from the collaboration than Lumet does. Though Find Me Guilty is a cut below such Lumet courtroom classics as The Verdict and Twelve Angry Men, it is a highly watchable, albeit lightweight, slice of New Jersey crime family life. And certainly, Diesel gives his best performance yet as often-imprisoned "Jackie Dee" DiNorscio, with all other of his performances tied for a distant second.

What makes DiNorscio stand out from the twenty other defendants at this marathon trial in the late '80s is his ill-advised decision to defend himself. It is, however, the best thing about the movie, as he cajoles the jury and scores his legal points, knowing a few of the tenets of law from his previous arrests.

Ron Silver makes an aptly anguished Judge Finestein, amused and trying to keep his temper at the same time. Also a standout is diminutive Peter Dinklage (The Station Agent), who brings such dignity to the role of lead defense attorney.

Find Me Guilty is guilty as charged — a not-great, but entertaining sidebar to the Lumet library.