RocknRolla (2008) Guy Ritchie

Production Budget: $18 million Worldwide Gross: $14 million

I had putting off this movie for a long long time.  Guy Ritchie, well, he is not among my top directors.  I love Snatch and like a few other of his movies but as the Blockbuster associate who was checking my movies out astutely pointed out “You know every time I think of renting RocknRolla I think of Swept Away.”  But also Ritchie also struck me as someone who was almost all style and no substance.  Sometimes it seems like he is more content masturbating in front of a camera than giving us characterization (waits for a Quentin Tarantino comeback).  Yet right now my hypocrisy comes out when I say I think Sherlock Holmes looks fun as hell.

But to make a long story short (too late) RocknRolla was not high on my list of must see movies.  It looked like even Ritchie was growing tired of the same Snatch/Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels type gangster movie and just threw out a rushed product for a quick cash in.  And after finally watching RocknRolla I can firmly say it is way more tired and played out than even the trailer would have you believe.

To try to explain the plot of this movie is almost impossible because of all the characters, plot threads, and interwoven story arcs.  Its like trying to explain the X Files mythology in a small paragraphs but here it goes.  Tom Wilkinson is an old school gangster who makes his money through real estate and Mark Strong is his right hand man.  Plot thread two is about the new school of gangster which they don’t really explain why its “new school” or why its better or whatever.  They are going to be lending money to Wilkinson to make a land purchase.  Plot #3 involves an accountant for the new school boss (played by Thandie Newton) who is bored with life and is having a fling with small time crook Gerard Butler.  Plot #4 is about Butler stealing money from Newton’s boss.  Plot #5 is a strange sub plot where Butler has a gay romance with another person from his gang who is going to prison in a short while.  Plot #6 involves Wilkinson’s son who is a RocknRolla.  He steals a painting which is central to the business deal between Wilkinson and the other mob.  Plot #7 is about Mark Strong and his dealings with the people around him.  Plot #8 completely wastes Jeremy Piven.  Seriously, he has nothing to work with here but he has some plot trying to find the RocknRolla.  And Plot #9 tries to explain what happened to Scarecrow’s brain.  I should not need a flow chart in following this plot.  Its like this movie is so concerned with telling a labyrinth story that we forget about the jokes.

My main problem is that the whole movie feels like a cover band version of Snatch.  You have this whole cast of characters mugging for the camera, spouting out one liners and really bad philosophical monologues and none of them even come close to matching the charm of Handsome Bob, Bullet Tooth,  Pitt, Avi, or Boris the Blade.  Now I’ve read reviews saying this is a decent comeback for Ritchie and while he is in safe territory he does a fine job.  However at this stage, I don’t want a safe boring picture from Ritchie.  I almost admire Revolver more at this point.  Even though that was a failure  in execution, I admire the fact he went out on a limb and tried for something new and grand.  I hear that this was the first movie in a proposed trilogy of RocknRolla films by Ritchie.  Even the credits boast we will see these characters again in The Real RocknRollas.  Somehow I believe that movie will sit beside the sequel to Buckaroo Bonzai on the shelf of sequels never to be realized.  This movie isn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination, but it is not worth anyones time either.

P.S. Mark Strong is the man and he needs to be in better movies.