Cast your minds back 25 years, when Cher’s ‘Believe’ was the biggest hit of the year and Nokia dominated the mobile phone market. These were simpler times. They also happened to better times, at least from a movie perspective. We had The Truman Show, Saving Private Ryan, There’s Something About Mary and American History X. 1998 also saw the release of Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels, arguably the best British gangster movie of the 1990s, maybe even all-time.
For some unfathomable reason, the Hatfield-born director, producer and screenwriter opted to ‘branch out’ and try his hand at making different types of movies
Guy Ritchie’s debut feature, which celebrates its 25th birthday at the weekend, had it all: gangsters, guns, great jokes, and a compelling plot. Two years later, working with almost identical ingredients, Ritchie released Snatch, another fantastic movie. Since then, however, Ritchie has struggled to make anything of genuine significance. He certainly hasn’t made anything that remotely rivals his two masterpieces. What happened? Why is this the case?
For some unfathomable reason, the Hatfield-born director, producer and screenwriter opted to ‘branch out’ and try his hand at making different types of movies. Like Anne Widecombe attempting the shimmy, Ritchie failed and failed miserably. He went from doing what he does best, making British gangster movies with British stars, to making gangster movies with Matthew McConaughey. The Gentlemen, released in 2019, was a half-hearted attempt to recapture the brilliance of his first two feature films. It wasn’t all bad. Colin Farrell, a poor man’s version of Mickey O’Neil (Brad Pitt) in Snatch, gave a good performance, as did Hugh Grant. However, McConaughey, the main character, was utterly unconvincing. Although the Texan is a fine actor, as a gangster, he’s less Billy Hill, more Benny Hill. As the Guardian‘s Simran Hans noted, ‘hearing McConaughey’s Texas drawl order a pint and a pickled egg feels like pure parody that’s hard to buy into’. The movie was, on the whole, a squeamish affair.
Ritchie made the mistake of trying to be too clever, of trying to let A-listers like McConaughey and Jeremy Strong (Kendall from Succession) compensate for the lack of actual narrative punch. Ritchie seemed to forget that a truly great British gangster movie requires truly great British actors. Or, at the very least, a cast of very good actors who, once they unite, become great. Lock, Stock saw Jason Flemyng (Tom), Jason Statham (Bacon), Nick Moran (Eddy) and Dexter Fletcher (Soap), all good actors in their own right, work excellently as a team. Their chemistry, the way they bounced off of each other was effortless.
They were, in many ways, four normal fellas who found themselves in the most abnormal of situations. This was one of the movie’s key selling points: its relatability. We all know a guy like Soap. We all have or had a Tom-like figure in our lives. The Lock, Stock storyline saw the four protagonists biting off far more than they could ever hope to chew, before crossing paths with truly terrifying characters. A great British gangster movie always requires a great British baddie at its heart. Sexy Beast had Ben Kingsley and Lock, Stock had Alan Ford, a genuinely terrifying and thoroughly believable villain.
Ritchie’s demise, if that’s the correct term, is similar to Matthew Vaughn’s (who produced the aforementioned Lock, Stock and Snatch). Vaughn, as many readers will know, directed the epic Layer Cake. Just like his pal Ritchie, he abandoned his roots to direct movies like Kingsman and Kick Ass – both fine in their own right, but nowhere near the level of Layer Cake. In fact, it could be argued that Layer Cake, released in 2004, was the last truly great British gangster film ever made.
Wherever you stand, it’s been a long time since we have been served up a fresh slice of this particular subgenre of crime film. Sadly, with the Marvelisation and Barbiefication of Hollywood, it might be a long time before we’ll see another one. So, Guy, Matthew, if any of you happen to read this, please go back to doing what you do best – making great British gangster movies. Lord knows, we desperately need more.
Comments