Do you remember the first time you saw Walton Goggins? Nowadays you can’t escape him. Every 10 minutes, he appears on the TV screen letting you know about the wonders of Walmart (Walton is not part of the Walton family since he’s from Alabama and not Arkansas). He’s also on plenty of TV shows that don’t have commercials including HBO’s White Lotus and Righteous Gemstones along with Amazon’s Fallout. Before that you might remember him from Justified, Sons of Anarchy and The Shield. Turns out I had forgotten the first time I saw Walton until the Blu-ray of Randy & The Mob arrived. One of the bonus features is the Oscar winning short film, “The Accountant.” I swear Cameron Whitley showed me the VHS before it won Oscar glory. Writer/director and star Ray McKinnon (O Brother, Where Art Thou?) must remember the first time he met Walton on the set of Murder In Mississippi back in 1990. The two must have gotten along since they’ve worked quite a bit over the years. Even after winning the Oscar, they along with Lisa Blount (who produced & starred in “The Accountant.”) teamed up to make the hilarious small town Southern comedy Randy & The Mob.
Randy Pearson (Ray McKinnon) runs a lot of businesses in his small Alabama town including a truck stop, a storage warehouse, a BBQ restaurant, a baton twirling academy run by his wife Charlotte (An Officer and a Gentleman‘s Lisa Blount) and more. Problem is Randy is running most of those businesses into the ground. When things get tough, he secures a loan from mob connected Franco (The Wire‘s Paul Ben-Victor). Things get nasty because Franco wants his money back at the same time Uncle Sam needs a payment. Seems like Ray has had many of his IRS deductions denied and owes payment immediately. Ray doesn’t have enough kneecaps to cover his debts. He tries to sell his truck stop to the rival owner played by Burt Reynolds (Smokey and The Bandit). But he won’t offer him much. He also can’t get any cash from his twin brother Cecil (also McKinnon) and his boyfriend Bill (White Collar‘s Tim DeKay). Things are looking bleak when Franco tells him he will help Randy straighten out his businesses with his specialist Tino Armani (Walton Goggins). Tino is a special character since he was raised in foster care in the South so he doesn’t seem Italian-American. He is rather Southern including his love of clogging. He begins to turn around many of Randy’s business. Is he really going to get Randy out of the money hole and became the entrepreneur he imagines himself?
Randy & The Mob is a fun comedy about what happens when you take the wrong kind of loan. The film is populated with plenty of actors you’ve seen in smaller roles around the TV dial and in movies. Bill Nunn (Do The Right Thing) runs Randy’s gas station. Ray McKinnon delivers two different performances as the brothers Randy and Cecil. You sense they’re twins, but not the same guy in different clothes. His role as Randy is like a really subtle Danny McBride performance. The part where he freaks out that his son has chosen futbol over football is brilliant. Lisa Blount is hilarious as Charlotte who is losing it since getting diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome. She can’t spin her batons. You can believe she’s had it with Randy (she was also Ray’s wife). Walton Goggins dominates the movie with his depiction of Tino. How can you not embrace a mobster that clogs? Walton predicts that Trent character although back in 2007, he comes off as a criminal version of Forrest Gump. This twisted approach makes Randy & The Mob so funny as a sweet Southern tale about investing in money pits.
Walton Goggins would probably want you to know that you can order the Blu-ray of Randy & The Mob from Walmart.
The Video is 1.78:1 anamorphic. The transfer is newly restored from the original film materials. You get the charm of the small town on the screen. The Audio is LPCM 2.0 stereo. The sound will let you understand the cadence of Walton’s accent.
The Accountant (38:34) is the Oscar winning short film from 2001. Tommy (Walton Goggins) and his brother David (Eddie King) attempt to save their family farm by meeting with a mysterious accountant (McKinnon).
The Making of Randy & The Mob (25:22) reminds us that the movie was shot on film. Ray talks about wanting to depict the middle class in the South. This is what he grew up around. They talk about making a darker film called Chrystal that had Billy Bob Thorton. They wanted to make a funny movie this time.
Trailer (2:25) shows Randy’s life falling apart and the mob taking over with Tino.
Lightyear Entertainment presents Randy & The Mob. Directed by Ray McKinnon. Screenplay by Ray McKinnon. Starring Ray McKinnon, Walton Goggins, Lisa Blount, Tim DeKay, Bill Nunn, Brent Briscoe, Paul Ben-Victor, Sam Frihart & Burt Reynolds. Running Time: 91 minutes. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: April 7, 2026.
