RocknRolla

Great Britain, 2008

Director: Guy Ritchie
Starring: Gerard Butler, Thandie Newton, Toby Kebbell, Tom Hardy, Tom Wilkinson
IMDB: 7.5

"A real rocknrolla wants the fuckin' lot"

Fans of director Guy Richie (Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, Revolver) will be happy to know that he has not strayed from the style and substance of his previous movies.

Lenny, considering himself the top dog in the London underworld, is doing a deal with the Russian Mafia who are paying him handsomely to grease the appropriate channels and get approval for construction of a new arena. Unfortunately, the 7 million euro commission fee gets stolen en route causing major headaches for them both.

Along the way we meet Mr One-Two (Gerard Butler), the head of 'The Wild Bunch' and his merry band of crims for hire, Johnny Quid the druggie Rock star who may or may not be dead, and a couple of extraordinarily persistent Chechnyan mercenaries.

I won't go into the story any further, as there is a lot going on in its almost 2hr running time, with many different characters and side-stories. Suffice to say that the story moves quickly, and is pure entertainment from start to finish.

The usual British gangsters, thugs and druggies are here, counter-balanced this time by the ever gorgeous Thandie Newton as femme fatale Stella, who adds a welcome sexy dimension to the film. Its a huge and impressive cast of characters too - all turning in top performances in what is a very polished film. The cinematography and visuals are equally impressive.

Guy Richie has certainly made the British gangster flick genre his own, and this latest movie is typically excellent, and highly recommended.

Rating: 8/10

Screenshots - click to enlarge