Review of RocknRolla (2008) by Jeff B — 12 Sep 2014
Even gangsters come of age. Snatch remains a guilty pleasure for this reviewer even if Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels is writer/director Guy Ritchie's out-and-out best work to date. He nearly comes close with RocknRolla, a London underworld tale that not only sees the former Mr. Madonna back in his UK-caper element but giving the material more immediacy and societal resonance--thematically at least. Oh, it's not that the movie is all-growed-up. In fact, it employs as much fun abandon as it does a sobering reality check.
In this R-rated crime dramedy, London's criminal underworld (Butler, Thandie Newton, Idris Elba, Chris ?Ludacris? Bridges, Jeremy Piven) takes an interest in a crooked land deal between a Russian mobster (Karel Roden) and local crime boss (Wilkinson).
With Ritchie?s latest, there are less histrionic aesthetics and more of a mature bent than his previous English gangster flicks. And the audience is the better for it. Ritchie spends more time crafting a brilliantly clever cat-and-mouse bait-and-switch story around the changing face of London?s real estate and citizenry. Oh, there?s style to spare but it will feel less like a music video than Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch to filmgoers. And the fresh cast is absolutely aces.
Bottom line: Rock solid.
This review of RocknRolla (2008) was written by Jeff B on 12 Sep 2014.
RocknRolla has generally received positive reviews.
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