Review of RocknRolla (2008) by Eyal D — 26 Nov 2012

ROCKNROLLA is stellar! A fun & frenzied gangster flick filled with acerbic wit, stylized violence and, to Guy Ritchie fans out there, more familiar characters that populate this wild goose chase of a cons-versus-cons ride. While imperfect this latest Ritchie, true to his own reliable form, is yet another wildly fanciful mob flick not quite at the level of SNATCH but much better controlled than REVOLVER and thoroughly entertaining. In yet another glam world concocted by Ritchie more small time crooks and highfalutin mobsters interact and double cross each other in an effort to control prime real estate and millions of dollars, all in the name of power.

In some very clever bit of casting, likeable Mark Strong is Archie, our storyteller, an estimable, self-effacing and loyal right-hand man to Tom Wilkinsonâ(TM)s powerful crime lord Lenny Cole, a notoriously angry, greedy grandstander [once again proving that his Oscar nominations are rightfully adding up]. Following a deal gone completely and easily wrong, in which questionable loyalists become untrustworthy, a series of mishaps and a suspicious death later turns the quest for both deal and money into a bloody tale of vendetta that includes a silky smooth vaporous accountant played to perfection by Thandie Newton, a trio of hired guns [including Gerard Butler and, in a unique sympathetic gay role, Tom Hardy], an off-kilter punk rocker menacingly yet sensitively portrayed as doomed junkie by Toby Kebbell, a greasy Russian mobster trying to stake in new territory [Karel Roden], and some American music promoters inadvertently caught up in the dangerous mess [Jeremy Piven included].

As expected, ROCKNROLLA is controlled and contrived â" and, despite the sporadic violence, visually pleasing to the eye â" yes, from start to finish. It is smoothly placed together like a jigsaw puzzle, the 500-piece kind, with a few struggling pieces here and there that are just a tad more difficult to place. But the factor that it may not all add up somewhat adds to the joy. You may also realize half way through that while the characters have no idea what is about to hit them, the audience gets led in on the formula, with a wink, as back seat drivers, pacing through the mayhem. And Ritchie, as usual, never forgets to include the hoodwinking humour. The real pleasure of watching Ritchieâ(TM)s work by now â" so readily predictable in form â" is in experiencing, first-hand, his charactersâ(TM) devilishly diverse comeuppance. And of that, we get plenty of rewards.

I figure that if you are already prepared to watch a Ritchie flick, and ROCKNROLLA is most certainly a worthwhile entry, then you can never come out of the theatre disappointed. Even, as weak as REVOLVER was, it still had its merits. Here, ROCKNROLLA has a lot to offer, not the least of which is guaranteed fun. Go escape now and watch other people get what they deserve.