RocknRolla

I enjoy Guy Ritchie films and this was good but not to the level of some of his other films but Guy does seem to be able to pick a good cast

I have to admit that I have a soft spot for Guy Ritchie's mockney gangster films. I don't know what it is. I know that they're not very profound and have nothing to say, I know that they're a pure fantasy vision of British crime and I know that if you've seen Lock Stock, you've pretty much seen them all. And yet, as Ritchie returns for a third iteration of the only formula with which he's tasted success , I still find myself walking out of the cinema massively entertained.

RocknRolla does absolutely nothing new. A quick list of things it shares with Lock Stock and Snatch would read thus: fast paced, witty dialogue; complex, interwoven plot threads; central McGuffin driving the mayhem (#1 antique shotguns, #2 huge diamond, #3 a lucky painting); smart, rapid editing; a mountain of Cockney crime stereotypes. Even things such as hard-as-nails Russian henchmen return. It completes the upward curve of scale in Ritchie's crime films: from a rigged card game to a rigged boxing circuit to rigged property development. The crime lords get larger in stature, the sums of money owed have more zeros on the end and the capers required to resolve the situation more grand, but it's still the same concept.

You'd think this was a list of criticisms, and if you found Snatch wearingly familiar you shouldn't need it spelling out that this film won't impress you. Looking for originality? Look elsewhere. RocknRolla may be pushing the formula a little bit, but if you accept that it's still enormous fun. Ritchie's directing is as proficient as ever, it moves at a merry old pace and the plot just about stays on the rails. The characters are endearing and there's plenty of laughs to be had. Other than its dearth of invention, the only real flaw with the film lies in the opening fifteen minutes, where Ritchie sets up the plot strands which will then unravel. Whereas previous films did this in a smooth, unforced way, here Ritchie lathers it with a liberal helping of voice-over narration so there's absolutely no confusion possible as to who is who and what they're after, which on many occasions extends to pointing out the bleeding obvious. Show don't tell- it's the first rule in the book Ritchie! It may be getting to the point where RocknRolla must go down as a guilty pleasure, but guilty pleasures are often the most fulfilling kind. And so it is here.

RocknRolla seems to be the beginning of the resurrection of Guy Ritchie's career. Not to anyone's surprise he does this with what he has been so potent with throughout his career; a British gangster film. If you've had any experience with Ritchie movies you know exactly what you're getting into here, a comedic thriller. This of course may seem problematic, in Ritchie's case it is not.

The writing and dialog is fast paced and quite witty and entertaining to watch. The movie as a whole maybe be a bit of a head scratcher here and there but the pay off is good and the idea is a bit of a parody of itself which is what makes this film so fun.

What Ritchie accomplishes though, in the same way he has with his past successful productions is putting together an extremely diverse and yet correlating cast. This starts with the lead man in Gerard Butler whose notoriety has steadily risen largely through his performances of comical caricatures (not an insult). With RocknRolla Butler seems to have found a role perfect for his appeal and charm he brings to the screen. This is largely because of a witty script and great, fun performances all around.

Then of course there is Mark Strong who until this year was largely a total unknown, at least in the American mainstream. While Gerard Butler may have found a genre he is most strongly suited for, Mark Strong could certainly use this along with Body of Lies to launch to the very least a respectable acting career. His posture, range and ability to change tone and style subtly not only between films but within them is something that should be and surely will be recognized.

Like other reviewers, I find Guy Ritchie very watchable. His cockney criminals are a delight to watch, all of them killing a human as easily as they might a fly and delivering punchlines all the way. Rirchie's screenplay brims with action and razor sharp dialogue for the first hour, then - very sadly - it loses direction.

The blueprint for ROCKNROLLA was SNATCH (UK, 2000), probably Ritchie's best, most rounded effort, with characters that pop out of the screen.

ROCKNROLLA does not quite match that highly original early Ritchie flick, it is unfortunately too long by easily 20 minutes, and its characters by and large do not stand out as much.

That said, Butler and Hardy make unlikely lovers who double up as criminals, Butler and Thandie have the briefest, least passionate love scene I have watched in some time, a real damp squib, and Tom Wilkinson as the fiendish Lenny Cole, Idris Elba as the ever supportive sidekick to Butler, and Mark Strong as the irrepressible Archy really steal the show.

Great cinematography, action sequences by David Higgs.

When a land deal goes wrong for One Two (Gerard Butler) and Mumbles (Idris Elba) they have to steal seven large to pay back underworld fixer Lenny Cole (Tom Wilkinson). Aided by accountant Stella (Thandie Newton) they make the hit and think that's the end of the matter. Only it isn't because now the can is open and there is worms every where. Worms involving a shady Russian business man, his favourite painting and a junkie rock star who keeps on dying!.

It's interesting viewing RocknRolla now just after Guy Ritchie's reinvention of Sherlock Holmes has put him back on the flavour of the month list. For at the time of its release Ritchie was on the back of a couple of critical bombs and was of course then known as Mr Madonna. The press and the film critics seemingly revelling in giving the bright director a good old cockney kicking after putting him on a pedestal with the success of the Lock, Stock and Snatch movies. Don't get me wrong, Swept Away is awful and Revolver, while not being the cess pool of vomit some would have you believe, is just too much labyrinthine plotting around a poor narrative story. But had Ritchie lost his mojo in 2008? Is it true that he got lucky with his cockernee gangster forays?.

Well what we know to be true is that Ritchie is comfortable back on the shady London manor that is at the heart of RocknRolla. Cynics will say he has played safe and returned to the formula that made him. Yeah, so what? A return to form is a return to form is it not? Besides which, if one is prepared to delve deep and examine RocknRolla, you will find that it's more polished than both Lock, Stock and Snatch; with a far better cast of actors able to fully realise the zippy structure and material of the piece. No! Ritchie is no great story teller yet, and judging by the plot of Sherlock Holmes, he's unable to spot a duff story either. Yet the vigour, vibrancy, and all round geezerness of RocknRolla is bountiful as a ream of charismatic characters all have stories within the story. Ritchie returning to gangland territory with guns, gags and sexual energy is a good thing. It really is.

The cast are uniformly strong. The roll call contains Mark Strong, Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Tom Hardy, Thandie Newton, Jeremy Piven, Jimmy Mistry, Idris Alba, Chris Bridges and Gemma Arteton. All of whom seem to enjoy being in "that type" of Guy Ritchie movie. But it's Toby Kebbell as junkie rock star Johnny Quid that shines the brightest. He's no stranger to fans of harder edged British cinema, his brilliant turn in Dead Man's Shoes often gets forgotten because of Paddy Considine's much lauded turn in that film. While Wilderness, and then Control, further pushed him forward as a major British talent. Here he covers many bases in character while the material lets him slyly dig at the music industry and link it feral like to the underworld. A terrific turn from a terrific young actor.

With a kicking soundtrack that includes the likes of The Clash, The Hives, The Subways, Lou Reed and The Sonics, it's not just the crime caper plot that positively pings. There's some links to Pulp Fiction, a painting we never see echoes the running suitcase gag, while a wonderful dance sequence between Butler and Newton of course nods to Uma & John. But it's fine, this is Ritchie's world and its fun, sexy and cunningly dangerous. 8/10