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Layer Cake (2004)
Anything Guy can do I CANNOT do better...
So Matthew Vaughn (producer of Lock, Stock... and Snatch) decides to part company with Guy Ritchie (director of afore mentioned films) and direct his own film. Hmmmmm. Layer Cake could have been a good film and I normally give a film a fighting chance before laying (excuse the pun!) into it. BUT Layer Cake is absolutely convoluted and the storyline is not very interesting at all. Daniel Craig is not believable as the protagonist without a name and the plot has far too many loose ends. The bit where Craig's crony batters a man whose evidence sent him to prison was a pure copy of Vinnie Jones' infamous scene in Lock, Stock. This films only saving grace was the hit-man sent from Holland (but done before in Things To Do In Denver When You Are Dead). What this film needed was sharp editing consisting of quick cuts and lots of memorable music. This would have turned it into a Lock, Stock or Snatch type movie where the editing truly did save the films. If Matthew Vaugn went out of his way to avoid comparisons with Lock, Stock and Snatch than it was a brave move but sticking to Guy Ritchie's template would have ensured a box-office bonanza. I don't rate this film highly at all. Sorry.
Unleashed (2005)
Good to see Bob Hoskins back in form
I think Jet Li is out to make a film in every major country of the world and if that is the plan I welcome it. While Romeo was Die (USA) was a film for the Hip-Hop generation and Kiss Of The Dragon (France) was for the more intellectual French cinema buff (don't get me wrong, I know they were both out-and-out Action flicks, I'm just talking about cinematography) Danny The Dog AKA Unleashed (UK) was made for the British gangster film fan. Bob Hoskins is almost playing Harold Shand (Long Good Friday) again albeit down on his luck with only a couple of heavies and an emotionally drained human wrecking ball in the shape of Jet Li. A brutal but very likable film with a touching performance from Morgan Freeman as a blind piano tuner who unlocks the humanity in the Dog (Jet Li). Highly recommended with brilliant fight scenes.
Triads, Yardies & Onion Bhajees! (2003)
A stand-out performance amid stirring stuff
At long last I get to review one of my favourite films of recent years. I got to see this while a student in Leicester in an art-house cinema. Triads, Yardies... blows away every stereotype concerning the British Asian community. The film belongs to newcomer Manish Patel (Singh) who literally steals the show as well as the cash and the girl (in the story!). Very few actors achieve cult status in their debut films but it appears that Patel has done this by the bucket load. Getting Dave Courtney (Mad Dave) to portray the head of the English mob was an inspired move. Remember, Guy Ritchie had earmarked this actor for the roles Vinnie Jones played in Lock, Stock... and Snatch. The fact this film is based on a very real four way gang war between the Indians, Chinese, Jamaicans and the English mobs for control of London's cocaine trade is a secondary story line. The main story arc is about a hit-man's (Patel) love for a woman and the heist of ten million dollars from Heathrow Airport. It is a shame this film was only screened at art-house cinemas as it would have made some serious cash at the multiplexes.
Crash (2004)
Awesome movie with breathtaking performances
Wow. This film truly took my breath away and that takes some doing! What can I say after the events of 9/11 and 7/7 the world needed a film like this to show that beneath our skin colours, despite our different religions we are ALL the same, share the same hopes and aspirations. The casting was very good and I was pleasantly surprised by the rapper Ludicrus - he played his part well and a lot of the films basic premise depended on his performance.
Thandie Newton finally proves to the world she can act. I saw he debut in the British film The Young Americans (dir: Danny Cannon) and it was clear she wasn't just eye candy (watch her in Mission Impossible 2), there is a kind of fragility to her acting and when she is given the chance she can deliver. Her scenes with Matt Dillon are electric and the scene with the 'girl and bullet' was just heart pounding stuff.
This film should be shown in schools and colleges around the world because a young person watching this could end up viewing the world and his fellow human beings in a more positive way. I don't mean to preach but I cannot fault this film and I hope it cleans up at the Oscars.
Green Street (2005)
Great film but pure fantasy football!
A lot of people have slammed this film but I'm not going to go down that route. So what if Elijah Wood was parachuted in as the token American star - the movie industry is about money and if the film needed Elijah Wood to make box-office cash than so be it. In general the film should be looked at as pure fantasy. If you can suspend belief than it is entertaining with a moral thread running through it. This film can easily rank alongside The Firm (Gary Oldman) and ID (Sean Pertwee) and it only a matter of time before ALL 3 will be available as a box set! My only gripe was that they didn't call the West Ham hooligans the ICF (Inter City Firm) - they opted to use the Green Street Elite (GSE) which sounded crap. The rivalry between the West Ham firm and the Millwall hooligans was over the top but violently entertaining. I loved the build-up to the character of The Major - truly mythological and it played out like some kind of Greek Tragedy. This film should be looked at as pure entertainment and not judged on a factual basis. It was made for the International market NOT soley the British market and I think people slamming the film are missing that point.
The Business (2005)
A watchable film and a star is born
All in all a good, watchable film with good all round performances but the stand-out performer here is definitely Tamer Hassan as Charlie, the drug-kingpin of Marbella. The Business echoes films like Sexy Beast and the part where Charlie and his goons are shooting at each other (they are wearing bullet-proof vests!!) is very much like the rabbit shoot in Sexy Beast. It is very obvious that The Business was intended to be a British Goodfellas and that is the only failing of the film. It is definitely not the comedy crime flicks that Lock, Stock and Snatch were but that is because The Business is a serious look at the British cocaine epidemic of the excessive eighties and a fictional look at the type of people behind it. Tamer Hassan along with Manish Patel (Triads, Yardies..) is fast becoming a rising star in the British acting scene.
Collateral (2004)
Less is more from Tom Cruise
I really enjoyed this film. Not really a big fan of Tom Cruise but in this film he proved the old adage of less is more. His acting was minimal as was his body movements. He was truly the bad guy in this film. I was very sceptical about Cruise as a hit-man but he pulls it off with aplomb and i'm sure anyone looking to hire an assassin would want like Vincent (Cruise). I like many people who have seen this film wished there could be a sequel but there obviously cannot. A prequel in which we learn about Vincent and how he came to be so cold and ruthless could work though. Jamie Foxx was OK but I feel he has been pigeon holed as some kind of new Denzel Washington which is a shame because he can act. I say this because I feel the Oscar for Ray was more for sentiment towards Ray Charles than Foxx's portrayal. Because of Cruise's economic portrayal of Vincent there wasn't really much for Foxx to do - minimal interaction on a physical level until the end etc. All in all a very good film that proves Cruise if good and this coming from someone who only saw Cruise as Maverick from Top Gun. Well done.