RockNRolla

Released: 2008

MPAA rating: R

Run time: 1:54

"RockNRolla" is the latest ensemble crime drama from Guy Ritchie ("Snatch", "Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels"). Ritchie sticks to his familiar London underworld, but manages to mix in some conflict with the Russian mob this time, as well. As with most Ritchie films, the accents are very thick and take a little time to get used to. The story, however, despite having lots of characters to keep track of, is very entertaining. Lenny Cole (Tom Wilkinson) is the "man" in the London underworld. He has city officials in his pocket and he is the guy you go to when you need to get something done. For a price, he can use his connections to get you the permits and licenses you need. When Uri (Karel Roden) comes to Lenny to get a building built, things get very interesting. As parts of the deal, there is $7 million and a "lucky painting" that keep getting in the way. On the sidelines, but major players in the events are the "Wild Bunch", One Two (Gerard Butler), Mumbles (Idris Elba) and Handsome Bob (Tom Hardy). They manage to be part of two separate heists to get the money meant for the deal, putting them in the crosshairs of both Lenny and the Russian mob. The final "monkey in the wrench" is Johnny Quid (Toby Kebbell), a presumed dead rocker who is a heroin addict and also happens to be the stepson of Lenny. The story is told through the eyes and narration of Archy (Mark Strong), Lenny's loyal right hand man. The movie takes lots of twists and turns, has lots of violence and lots of humor throughout. The amazing thing about this movie is the performance of Tom Wilkinson, who is an American actor, but pulls off the heavily accented Brit mobster perfectly. It is an extremely strong performance. The rest of the cast is also very good and Ritchie, besides being an excellent writer, seems to always get great performances from his cast. I enjoyed this movie and actually believe it is one of Ritchie's best. Despite the plot being very convoluted, I had no problem following what was going on. The movie also features probably the funniest sex scene ever between Gerard Butler and Thandie Newton.

Favorite line: Mumbles: "If I could be half the human being Bob is at the cost of being a poof, I'd have to think about it. Not for very long, but I'd have to pause."

Grade: B

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