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Stars: Michael Madsen, Vinnie Jones, Jamelia, Tamer Hassan, Simon Szabó, Nikolett Barabas, Mark Phelan | Story by Csaba Pindroch & Zoltan Furedi | Screenplay by Ivo Marloh, Dénes Orosz, Róbert Koltai | Directed by Róbert Koltai, Éva Gárdos

I’m not sure which title is worse: Diamond Heist, the name of the film I was tasked with reviewing; or Magic Boys, the name given to the streamed movie I actually watched. One suggests a generic, bargain-basement action thriller involving tons of money and violence but no stakes whatsoever, while the other hints at a cheap Magic Mike knock-off. While it’s possible that both of those concepts could lead to entertaining movies, the final product is a wholly disappointing amalgamation of both.

A quick IMDb search reveals that the two titles belong to the same film, which rarely means anything good but makes sense as it’s obvious from the start that the makers...

MOSCOW -- A new Prague-based British production company aims to tap private investors directly, using telephone sales techniques to raise money for independent feature films. Year of the Snake, founded by Londoner Mark Phelan and Colorado native Ryan Watson, who met in the Czech Republic while working in telemarketing, is using a team of trained sales representatives at a Prague call center to offer investors a chance to share directly in the profits -- and risks -- of making movies. With a six-year schedule of five films with average budgets of $10 million, Year of the Snake aims to raise $50 million through three share offerings, the first of which, for 10,000 shares priced at $750 each ($7.5 million) is already under way and "moving well ahead of schedule," according to the company.