Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels Review
by "Ross Anthony" (email AT rossanthony DOT com)October 3rd, 1999
Tarantino Envy
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
By Ross Anthony
When I first saw the poster for this film, I thought "it's a spoof on 'Reservoir Dogs'." I wasn't too far off, it certainly shares that Tarantino genre. Though, it's not a spoof -- unless you think "Reservoir Dogs" is a spoof on "bad guy" films.
I suspect you'll enjoy this picture if you're a fan of Quentin Tarantino, or even harsh action films like "Ronin." If you're not familiar with Tarantino, this is what you can expect: An ugly real violence contrasted with gangster goof-ups. Rat packs of hoodlum and hoodlum wannabes that fumble through a gritty underworld maze surprising each other at the turns and exhausting many a cartridge of bullets. Lots of dead guys.
This is a British film with four teams of shady characters, a thug and his son, and Sting (as the involuntarily involved bartender). That's a lot of bad guys, so it takes a while to introduce them all, making the first part of the film rather uneventful and dry. The ball gets rolling near the middle of the picture and picks up speed at a steadily increasing rate right up to the credits. The twists and turns are well set up, yet unexpected and fun -- really fun.
Lastly, the picture sports some unique cinematographic sequences (utilizing, super-slow-mo, stop-action, etc.) spicing up the presentation and maintaining a light-hearted perspective despite the blood.
Starring Jason Flemying and Nick Moran.
Written and directed by Guy Ritchie.
Produced by Matthew Vaughn via Polygram released at Gramercy.
Grade..........................B
--
Copyright © 1999 Ross Anthony, currently based in Los Angeles, has scripted and shot documentaries, music videos, and shorts in 35 countries across North America, Europe, Africa and Asia. For more reviews visit:
http://RossAnthony.com
More on 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels'...
Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.
