RocknRolla (2008)

Release Date: Wednesday October 8, 2008 Genre: ActionRunning Time: 114 min. Director: Guy Ritchie Cast: Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Thandie Newton, Mark Strong, Idris Elba, Tom Hardy, Toby Kebbell, Jeremy Piven, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges 

RocknRolla is a movie about what happens when the old school meets the new school.  An intelligently written script a lot of people are comparing to Lock Stock And Two Smoking Barrels.  That’s too easy for my liking.  It’s easy to say that and so it’s been copped out to be a return to something when really it’s not. This film is the evolution of Guy Ritchie. 
It’s the combination of what Lock Stock had in terms of dark/criminal comedy with the very convoluted plot line of Revolver. It’s a nice balance of making people think about the nature of things while not making it hard for them to do so.  I really don’t think RocknRolla is going to get the credit it deserves artistically or commercially but I am sure it will have quite a cult following.  And I’m doubly sure that it’s characters will become staples of reference in years to come. 

The film is shot wonderfully and really makes you question what the hell Hollywood does with all that money when Ritchie is making something that looks so damn good for just 18 million dollars.  The entire cast is
amazing and in their own time they all get great lines and are equally but unequivocally magical in their performances. The two seasoned actors that are the gems in this film are Mark Strong (plays Archie and does a lot of narration) and Gerard Butler (plays One Two).  You really get to see these two in a light you’ve always wanted to see them but never really got the chance.  But the real beauty of the picture is the force of nature “Johnny Quid” brought to life by Toby Kebbell.  Now this is the real RocknRolla of the film.  Watching him in this film is frightening and fascinating all at once.  I’ve never been so intrigued by one actors versatility in a role that in reality he made interesting because on it’s own it’s just not all that interesting.   How interesting can a junkie rocker with step daddy issues be?  Watch RocknRolla and you’ll figure it out real fast. 

It really was worth lining up for and was a great finish to my festival experience. You should definitely look out for it October 31^st. I realize how dorky I sound but I can’t wait to buy the DVD…and I’m flirting with the idea of buying the soundtrack.  Damn you Guy Ritchie….damn you!

For more information check out the RocknRolla website

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 14th, 2008 at 9:36 pm and is filed under Action, Crime. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.