New Moon is nothing if not an international advertisement for the hungry virtues of virginity and young people can’t get enough of it
The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Theatre
A smart, prickly and rewarding view of sexual and emotional confusion
Cock
Restaurants
Kitchen W8 is a bargain for this area, if such sophistication is what you crave
Kitchen W8
Too long and drawn out but very entertaining with excellent special effects
This is a peculiar play and does not work for me. Some of it is very funny but there are real flaws
Alex has a strong powerful voice and was faultless, she is far better now than she was on the X-Factor
London,
Nick Curtis's rating
Reader rating
Dir: Guy Ritchie.
Cast: Gerard Butler, Thandie Newton, Gemma Arterton, Tom Wilkinson, Jeremy Piven, Mark Strong, Idris Elba, Toby Kebbell, Karel Roden, Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges
Description: London hoodlum Lenny Cole is keen to forge close business ties with Russian entrepreneur Uri and the pair agree to join forces on a high profile construction project which requires seven million Euros of Uri's cash. Unfortunately, the money is stolen shortly after it leaves the bank. Uri demands justice before seeking out his accountant Stella to arrange a second withdrawal. Meanwhile, Lenny has problems of his own to retrieve a stolen painting. Lenny asks right-hand man Archie to enlist the services of bad boys One Two and Mumbles to track down the thief and return the masterpiece.
Country: UK. 2008. 114mins
Brio and swagger: Jimi Mistry with Tom Wilkinson as the old-style crimelord in the comic thriller
Gunpoint: Mark Strong stars in the film
On a rolla: Madonna and Guy Ritchie leave the premiere party
Guy Ritchie's latest mockney gangster flick a return to form, or a repeat offence? A bit of both, to be honest, guv. The director has skulked back to the stylised criminal milieu of his splashily successful 1998 debut, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. He has also recaptured some of the cinematic brio and tonguein-cheek swagger that made us love him back then, before the genre he created was milked to death. And before he turned out to be a toff, married Madonna and gave us the unwatchable Swept Away and Revolver.
So RocknRolla is another tale of lovable wideboys with daft nicknames, spouting patter and attitude until they're given a short, sharp slap by bigger, nastier crims.
Its nominal theme - about dodgy deals in London's burgeoning property market - has been dealt a bit of a blow by the recession, but never mind. Suffice to say that likely lads One-Two (Gerard Butler) and Mumbles (Idris Elba) end up embroiled with an old-style crimelord (Tom Wilkinson). There's also a dodgy Russian oligarch and the most glamorous accountant in the world (Thandie Newton), who gets her kicks from crime. Like you do. Oh, and there's a MacGuffin, along the lines of the mysterious briefcase in Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction, about a beautiful painting that finds itself in the hands of the crimelord's junkie, pop-star stepson (Toby Kebbell), who's gone awol and is presumed dead.
As you may have deduced, the plot is overstuffed and laborious. But you wouldn't see RocknRolla for the plot. Shrugging off the seriousness that lumbered Revolver, Ritchie again proves himself a very funny writer, and his stylised dialogue has an undeniable zing to it. His tricksy directing style - colour washes, speed changes, stark lighting, sudden zooms, subtitles - makes even the most pedestrian scenes seem hectic. And he's great with actors, especially since he's not demanding too much of them.
RocknRolla is very much style over substance, and relies on an excellent soundtrack to stoke emotion. Nonetheless, watching Butler, Elba, and Mark Strong as the laconic enforcer Archie, act together here is like seeing old jazz pros jamming. Ritchie gets good cameos from the likes of rapper Ludacris and Entourage's Jeremy Piven, and allows newcomer Kebbell to show off his hollow-eyed intensity as well as his snakily muscular torso.
Admittedly, Ritchie doesn't really seem to care about women. Apart from a few incidental-bimbos there's only Newton, and she slices through her part, including the briskest love scene ever filmed, as elegantly and coldly as a switchblade. But there's a hilarious subplot about male sexuality that suggests Madonna's brother Christopher Ciccone was wide of the mark when he accused Ritchie of homophobia in his recent book. And that we shouldn't take the gun-toting machismo of RocknRolla too seriously.
RocknRolla is not remotely original and sags badly towards the end, but until that point it's a witty, energetic and efficient comic thriller, showcasing a wealth of (mostly) British talent. The closing credits suggest that it's the first instalment of a planned trilogy. That this prompted last night's premiere audience to applause rather than horror is a sign of how wise it was for Ritchie to revisit past triumphs.
RocknRolla opens this Friday.
Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.
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One question, what is the name of the actress who played the gorgeous tennis player early in the film... never to be seen again?
- Remy Chevalier, Weston, CT USA
Really enjoyed it, agree wiith the reviews mostly ie similar in style to L-Stock etc but highly enjoyable. Great characters esp. Johnny Quid.
I would say it Mr Ritchies best film since L-Stock . Def worth a trip to the cinema
- Shane, london
I fall asleep through most movies and theatre, which is nothing to do with being bored, just the lulling effect of tennis eyes. Since I stayed awake through this film it tells me something, though I'm not sure what.
I enjoyed it. It was amusing. But what did annoy me was that I lost track of the plot and the sub plot halfway through - it was so jumpy. I decided just to roll with it as I enjoyed the characters, especially Handsome Bob, (Tom Hardy), who is, to me, an actor in the Brando vein. Understated yet with a luminous presence.
I came out of the cinema, frustrated that I hadn't managed to follow the plot, and asked a couple of fellow movie-goers if they had 'got it', but they just eyed me warily like I was some mad old woman (which I am). It felt as though I'd fallen asleep through a big chunk, but I know I hadn't. People were getting shot, and then they seemed to be alive again. Or were they different actors who looked alike? Or maybe, I thought, that was the twist, they were using starting pistols, not proper guns. A post-modern nod to anti-violence. Noisy n flash, but no kill. Dunno.
Bottom line - it was an enjoyable old skool romp. Entertaining and Fit for the Purpose.
- Isobel Eve, london
Great, another film glamorising violence and the gangster lifestyle - just what we need.
Is it any wonder that there is such a problem with street violence?
Such pathetic, juvenile films appeal to the mindless thugs who think that weapons and violence are the way to get respect. They undo the good work of community groups and should not be given a licence.
- Mike, Hackney
Morning:
14°c
