THE idea sounds better than the execution. A mob family hides out in France under assumed identities after the father becomes a wanted man for snitching on fellow gangsters. Given that the head of the family is played by Robert De Niro, an actor not unacquainted with mob movies, you hope for more than you get.

The uneasy mix of nasty violence and black comedy just doesn’t gel under the direction of Luc Besson, whose CV takes in such diverse movies as Leon, The Fifth Element and Transporter.

The family in question now go by the name of Blake. They’re constantly on the move for fear of mob assassins. Is taking up residence in a town in Normandy really a good idea for a bunch of Americans who don’t speak French? They’ll stick out like sore thumbs, especially as they find it hard to control their violent tendencies.

De Niro’s Fred Blake is as likely to batter the plumber over the head with a heavy object as offer him a cup of tea when he comes to look at the water supply. Wife Maggie (Michelle Pfeiffer) doesn’t deal with bad service at the local supermarket by filling out a comment card. No, she blows up the supermarket.

Son Warren (John D’Leo) reacts to bullying by plotting violent retribution on the bullies who take the mickey, while daughter Belle (Glee’s Dianna Agron) gets the better of aggressive classmates by bedding the local hunk.

Tommy Lee Jones looks on with a worried air as the FBI handler charged with keeping the Blakes in check and, with the aid of two cohorts, stopping the mob executing them and disturbing the peace and quiet of the French countryside.

Despite Martin Scorsese as an executive producer – and his De Niro collaboration GoodFella featuring in a key scene set in a French film club – The Family makes you an offer you may well be able to refuse.