Review of 44 Inch Chest (2009) by Sarah H — 18 Jan 2010

44 Inch Chest is a strange film. It is about a tough bloke called Colin Diamond (Ray Winstone). His wife leaves him for a younger man, and Colin loses his grip on sanity as he captures the other man intending on killing him.

It stars Ray Winstone and John Hurt - the latter playing the devilishly horrible character Old Man Peanut - a sexist, homophobic psychopath with a liking for the "c word", among other profanities.

I enjoyed this film to an extent - it wasn't an action thriller with lots of gore - it was a decent look into the failing sanity of a man who finds his wife is cheating on him after 21 years of an apparent happy marriage as he comes to terms with her decision.

For those looking for a gritty gangster film, I would advise avoiding this film - it is mostly set in one dingy little room in an abandoned house, as the men decide what to do with their victim, and Colin slips towards insanity with long scenes simply happening inside his own head, but made to appear very real.

Whilst I enjoyed this film, it was very slow in places and the end didn't really manage to come to any specific conclusion. However it was a good watch - all the actors did well in their assorted roles, and it was interesting to see John Hurt's portrayal of the grumpy nasty piece of work Peanut played excellently, showing exactly why this film was granted an eighteen rating.

Ray Winstone was pretty good as well - the betrayed Colin was striking in his insanity - regardless of some of his actions, I couldn't help but feel sorry for him, especially once the credits rolled with all the things he had to think about and how much his wife's actions had hurt him emotionally.