High Heels and Low Lifes has some effective moments. I laughed out loud a few times. I give it points for effort. In the end, however, the film is a sometimes irritating and ultimately frustrating British comedy.

Minnie Driver and Mary McCormack play the "high heels"—Shannon and Frances, a nurse and struggling actress, and unlikely friends, who one drunken evening happen to eavesdrop on communications between thieves—the "low lifes"—taking part in a bank robbery. After having no luck reporting the robbery at the local police department, Shannon and Frances decide to take matters into their own hands and make a little profit off the low lifes. What follows is a series of comic events that all depend on the story's cast of buffoons. Even the girls are painted in broad, slapstick strokes. Which is a bit infuriating because the screenwriter and director have also attempted to inject this comic caper flick with moments of crime violence and death. It's an unsettling concoction that tries to have it both ways but really shouldn't have tried.

Still, I found several scenes laugh-out-loud funny. At times, the low lifes seethe with humorous anger because of the machinations of these two bimbos who know nothing of crime. And the two lead actresses, particularly Driver, create some genuinely entertaining moments. In most of her scenes, however, McCormack comes across as irritating and blunt, making me wish she'd wipe that manly look of earnestness off her face and just lighten up. She embodies the talentless actress she portrays in the film, acting too hard in a film that requires a lighter touch.

I found the ending of this film particularly frustrating. It's not giving anything away to say that the girls wind up making some illicit money out of the whole deal. They foil the criminals once again and take off with some loot. But the low lifes are still out there! The story is far from over, and yet the movie ends happily, cheerfully, in full music-video ignorance. All I could think was, Those poor funny girls are dead in two days.

Buena Vista presents High Heels and Low Lifes in an anamorphic transfer of the film's original 1.85:1 theatrical aspect ratio. The image is nearly flawless. Colors are brightly natural and accurate, and detail reaches into backgrounds. The only flaw I noticed was minor artifacting in rare background shots. This is really a more impressive transfer than this film deserves.

This disc's Dolby Digital 5.1 track is a fine sound presentation. The front soundstage is very wide, and surround activity is generous. The opening sequence, in which a sound engineer covertly records private conversations, is a wonderful showcase for this disc's audio efforts. Voices dart all around you, and the musical score seems to emanate from the center of the room.

The DVD contains three extra features. First up is a business-like audio commentary from director Mel Smith and writer Kim Fuller. The two engage in occasionally witty but always dry British banter, focusing their attention on the details of the production. It's a fairly informative track, but the tone will have your eyelids at half-staff.

Next is a featurette titled Low Lifes and High Heels. It's a jokey affair, sprinkled liberally with clips from the movie. Driver and McCormack have a giggly time talking about their characters.

The third and final supplement is an entirely pointless montage of clips from the film entitled Action Overload. It's a waste of disc space.

This movie would have benefited from a cohesive mood. Go for the comedy or go for the realism of the criminal violence. Instead, High Heels and Low Lifes, in trying to do both, doesn't do much of neither.