A reclusive ex-cop is hired as a PI to help an alcoholic TV star accused of murder. Slightly baggy adaptation of Howard Michael Gould’s fun Hollywood comedy-thriller: casting is spot-on (though Mel Gibson could have done more to lean into his reputation), but flat direction means the zip isn’t there to make this fly.
Here’s the trailer.
The life of an Australian outlaw, as narrated to his child. An excellent adaptation of the Peter Carey novel, with vivid performances and a distinctive visual approach. The best movie version of the Ned Kelly story to date, and a strong arty outback Western in its own right. Recommended.
A London-based drug dealer’s empire is threatened by rival forces and a blackmailer. Fourth and about the best of Ritchie’s gangland comic fantasies. Familiar ingredients and approach, but handled with verve throughout. Everyone’s in on the joke, not least standouts Colin Farrell and Hugh Grant.
Five former soldiers plan a robbery on a drug lord’s jungle hideout. Well-sustained heist-goes-wrong thriller with a military angle. A superb cast lifts straightforward genre material, somewhat elevated by serious handling and moviemaking craftsmanship throughout.
A fantasy-oriented retelling. The second act is fine swashbuckling nonsense, but this version is stuck with lumpen first and third acts which set up unnecessarily complex (and irrelevant) backstory. Still, some fun to be had, and there’s one very neat idea about Excalibur.
![The Gentlemen [AKA Toff Guys] (2019, dir. Guy Ritchie)](https://255review.files.wordpress.com/2020/04/gentlemen.jpg?w=512)
255 Review 