Review of RocknRolla (2008) by Jamie T — 23 Apr 2011

Given Ritchie's reputation, I expected a lot more from this; as it is, this is the weakest film of his that I've seen (no, I haven't seen SWEPT AWAY), although it has a decent amount going for it. The greatest weakness is the story, which never comes close to the cleverness and tightness of SNATCH or LOCK, STOCK--in other words, it feels like what those films would have been had a lesser man written and directed them. There are several plot strands here, none of which are as sharply handled as they should be, and which fail to tie together in any really satisfying way. The performances, however, are quite good, and they, along with some truly enjoyable moments, nearly put the film in the black--but not quite.

The plot strands here involve ace accountant Stella (Thandie Newton), who bankrolls the criminal operations of "The Wild Bunch", led in part by One-Two (Gerard Butler) and Mumbles (Idris Elba); Russian gangsters led by Uri (Karel Roden), who are seeking to invest in London; mean-old-bastard ganglord Lenny Cole (Tom Wilkinson), who tangles with Uri (and The Wild Bunch); Johnny Quid (Toby Kebbell), Lenny's stepson, a drug-addicted rocker who is much cleverer than he looks; and assorted others. Archy (Mark Strong), Lenny's right-hand man, narrates the story.

As noted, these plot threads wander about diversely, but at the end they are barely more connected than they were to begin with; the brilliant concertos of Ritchie's previous gangster epics become a muddled cacophany here, and despite the scope of the film, the weak construction makes the 114-minute running time rough going at times. There's a objet d'MacGuffin here, too; in LOCK, STOCK it was a pair of antique shotguns; in SNATCH it was a diamond; here it's Uri's "lucky painting", which we never see. The lucky painting is a pretty thin gimmick, and the fact that we never see it is clearly meant to provoke discussion; it merely provokes irritation.

The performances offer intermittent compensation. Gerard Butler does decently as One-Two, boasting what seems to be his native accent; the role doesn't give him much to work with, however, and Butler doesn't leave a strong impression. Elba is a bit better as Mumbles, but he too is unable to really excel. Wilkinson is at least fun as Lenny, and clearly enjoys sinking his teeth into the rotten old man. It's not a particularly strong role, but Wilkinson is good in it. Newton, however, falls almost totally flat; Ritchie isn't terribly good at writing female roles (SNATCH has only one notable female role; LOCK, STOCK has none, really), but Newton never seems comfortable in the role; the attempt to make a femme fatale out of her doesn't work at all.

Kebbell, as Johnny Quid, has little to do until mid-way through, after which it gradually becomes apparent that he is, in fact, the main character, and fittingly, he's one of the better-drawn characters. Despite having a horribly forced monologue on the subject of his addiction (clearly intended as a virtuoso moment on Ritchie's part, it just doesn't come off), Kebbell is full of the grungy life that marks Ritchie's best creations, and the final third, in which he focuses most prominently, is the film's best. Mark Strong is even better as the smooth, hard-edged Archy, getting most of the best lines and ultimately, along with Johnny Quid, emerging as the film's most likable character. Tom Hardy, as the gay "ladies' man Handsome Bob, also makes a good impression, although the joke of Butler's troubled reaction to his orientation flops, feeling more than a bit dated.

Ritchie's direction, like his script, feels a bit like a retread of his earlier work, and there's a certain anonymity to the proceedings that makes it hard to care about the goings-on. Technically, it's nicely polished, but it never reaches the full boil it clearly aims for. There's enough goodies scattered throughout to make it worthwhile, especially for Ritchie fans, but it must be counted a disappointment.