This lacks the novelty and exuberance of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998). Neither does it have the confidence of possibly his best film RocknRolla (2008). A film that seems to have more of a sense of itself than this one. Richie manages some mild originality from the scenario, but he’s ploughing the same asphalt as his earlier films. Even King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017) is a gangster film wrapped in mythic cellophane. Hugh Grant stands out as the slimy private investigator telling the story. A device that manages to keep the pace and interest piqued. I like this device. It gives the storytelling a certain style and rhythm. Other than that, it really is business as usual for a bunch of smart mouthed mock gangsters doing their t’ing. As The Jam proclaims at the end of the film “That’s Entertainment”, Mr Richie style.
Darrin // Nightingale 