London

Directed by newcomer Hunter Richards, London is a complex tale of a man scorned by a traumatic breakup. Jessica Biel plays the title character, a savvy sophisticated woman who was the love of Syd's (Chris Evans) life. Since she left him, he has become a complete wreck. He now spends his days drinking and snorting cocaine. Six months later, he finds out through a random phone call that London is moving to Los Angeles. The worst part is that her friend Becca (Isla Fisher) is throwing a going away party - one that he isn't invited to. Determined to get London back, Syd decides to crash the party along with his unsuspecting dealer Bateman (Jason Statham), a banker who sells drugs on the side. When they get there, they eventually wind up in the bathroom. They snort huge amounts of coke and talk about life and love as Syd attempts to get up his nerve and talk to London. Along the way we are introduced to a number of eccentric characters, such as feisty bartender Mallory (Joy Bryant) and high-school student Maya (Kelli Garner). Each one plays a part in Syd's tripped-out journey of self discovery.

Although it features a cast full of popular young stars, London is not an easy sell in the slightest.. Audiences aren't likely to respond due to its strange and offbeat plot. It reminds me a lot of 1999's Go in this regard, although it is considerably less mainstream. It is truly a character study of many different individuals, all of them reflecting on life as the events unfold before their eyes. It moves at a slow pace but is never boring thanks to excellent performances and stylish direction.

Chris Evans is on screen for almost every frame and delivers another excellent performance. He shows his dramatic chops here and exhibits an ability for both comedy and drama. His character is very complex and has many different layers, all of which are revealed throughout the course of the film. Jason Statham, well-known for his action roles, plays against type here as the straight laced businessman Bateman. He shows his talent in both comedy and drama, and also has great chemistry with Evans. Jessica Biel is radiant and fascinating as London, a woman longing for complete commitment in an otherwise stable relationship. She has strong chemistry with real-life boyfriend Evans and her character is believable and likable. Most of her scenes are flashback sequences, so it is interesting to watch her character progress.

The supporting cast is great for a film of this size. Joy Bryant is solid as Mallory and gets the most to do of the side characters. Kelli Garner makes an impression but isn't given a whole lot to do, maybe appearing for fifteen minutes total. Isla Fisher, who was hilarious in last year's Wedding Crashers, gives another strong comedic performance here as the naive and unsuspecting party host. The rest of the actors are fairly insignificant overall, with most being reduced to mere walk-on roles (such as comedian Dane Cook).

Richards writes and directs this project and shows great promise in his first outing. The direction is stylish and he finds many interesting takes to use - making the film easy to watch and helping it from dragging on. The screenplay is also solid. It seems like something originally written for the stage, but it works on film thanks to the way each scene is handled. While there are comedic elements, there are also several sweet and poignant scenes. The best scene in the film is the final confrontation between London and Syd in an airport. The Crystal Method provides the score for the film, a techno-fringed mixture of various beats that fits well with the tone of the film.

Overall, I can see why London isn't appreciated by critics and won't be embraced by audiences. It's a strange film that requires patience from the viewer due to its slow pace. But thanks to excellent performances and stylish direction, it turns out to be a completely fascinating and involving tale.

8/10 (B+)

Hunter Richards' film about a young man(evans) who is desperate to win back his beautiful ex-girlfriend, London (Biel). The film isn't deep, but i found it extremely effective in showing a simple story. The performances were real, even Biel was good here as was Evans and Statham who truly stole the show. I liked the screenplay a lot and the direction suited the film as well. I liked the cinematography from Jo Willems and the music by The Crystal Method. The film is a great 2 million dollar film, low budget, high quality, they should make more films like this.--- very good film from hunter richardsIMDb Rating: 6.0, my rating: 9/10

Surprisingly, for the type of dialog driven movie that this was it was pretty good. I think it was mainly a movie about the human psyche and how it can screw with people hardcore sometimes and screw up good things (relationships). This is also very accurate in portraying how someone with anxiety might feel and act after a very hard breakup. Not everyone will be able to relate to the guys actions here or may think it is because he's a druggie, but I think this movie is more about anxiety. When he is seemingly going nuts (around the time talking to the shrink)it was very realistic of the helpless feeling someone with panic attacks will have.

Almost every conversation, mood and situation in this movie I can relate to, and have been in before. I've had the same conversation with a few ex girlfriends when they were trying to push religion on me. So I don't think the dialog was trying to be too pretentious or philosophical at all. It was just portraying the stupid things people argue about that someone may have been very caught up in during the passion of the moment, but then thinking back to them they seem very stupid to fight about.

I've been reading a lot of very negative reviews posted here about "London" in the past couple of hours. Most of the reviewers complain about rich yuppie kids with no jobs snorting coke and bitching to their therapists. Yes, this is what goes on in the background for 2/3 of the movie.

However, even though bitchy, rich yuppies are not likable characters, the movie portrays them very accurately. Having spent some time with "these people", I felt the movie was incredibly honest and dealt with pertinent issues. Maybe not pertinent to you in particular, but pertinent to these types of people in this age group.

The acting is really superb. Chris Evans strips down his likable "flaming" side to become an annoying, ego-maniacal prick. Stratham gives a powerful performance, which for some reason screams of Bruce Willis's "finer" work. Biel is the weakest of the main actors, mostly due to the script edging her out of most of the movie. All the actors are right on the money with their characters. Within 10 minutes you start to feel like you've known them for years.

But beyond the drugs, beyond the obnoxious mannerisms, lies a story of a real relationship. By way of flashbacks, but we are given some great insights into how the relationship worked, and how it fell apart. The characters screwed it up, and its amazing watching Syd (Evans) re-live both his best and worst memories. That is the most essential and successful part of the film.

This film tells the story of a man who is dumped by his girlfriend before she moves to Los Angeles. He gets talking with his drug dealer after snorting cocaine.

With the big names in the film, I thought "London" would be good. Just ten minutes into the film, I was already thoroughly bored. The whole film is basically two guys talking talking and talking for hours in a posh toilet. They argue, swear at each other, and is full of negative atmosphere. And I am so annoyed by Jason Statham's wig. I just think it is wrong for him to have a wig because his bald image is just the right image for him. Chris Evan's character is called Syd, which probably stands for Sydney - and his girlfriend is called London. The other characters might as well be called Berlin, Tokyo, Beijing and New York! I could not get into the film at all. I thought it was a terrible bore.