00s Movie Review - Snatch

Director: Guy Ritchie
Genre: Comedy/ Crime
Runtime: 104 minutes
Year: 2000
Starring: Jason Statham, Stephen Graham, Brad Pitt, Dennis Farina, Vinnie jones, Benicio Del Toro, Jason Flemyng

Description: Unscrupulous boxing promoters, violent bookmakers, a Russian gangster, incompetent amateur robbers and supposedly Jewish jewelers fight to track down a priceless stolen diamond.

Review: The British director Guy Ritchie has an amazing international debut with “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels”. His flashy and energetic way of filming and the fun characters in combination with rough action scenes made us think of Quentin Tarantino. Ritchie has a lot of fans. The movie “Snatch” is also a gem and he managed to get some bigger names like Brad Pitt, Benicio del Toro and Dennis Farina for this project.

“Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels” with a modern and more expensive touch, that’s what you could call “Snatch”. Not only the multiple storylines that intertwine, but also some known faces. Jason Statham, Vinnie Jones, Jason Flemyng and Alan Ford. It’s visible that everyone had fun making “Snatch” and I think I even prefer it over “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels”.

It all starts in a diamond shop in Antwerp, where a big diamond is stolen by a gang lead by Franky Four Fingers (Benicio del Toro). The diamond is supposed to be delivered to Avi (Dennis Farina) in New York. But Franky makes a stop in London, where his poker addiction gets him into trouble. The criminal Boris ‘The Blade’, for whom the diamond was meant, goes after Franky. Boris hires some thieves; Vinny, Sol and Tyrone. During a boxing match Franky will be robbed by one of them and they will bring the diamond to Boris. At the same time Turkish (Jason Statham) and Tommy (Stephen Graham), two small time thieves, are involved with that same boxing match because one of their boxers was knocked out by gypsy Mickey (Brad Pitt). While buying a caravan they run into Mickey, because promotor Brick Top (Alan Ford) needs a replacement boxer. Because Brick has some bets going on, Mickey has to go down in the fourth round. Off course Mickey won’t and all hell breaks loose.

“Snatch” follows the same story structure as “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels”, has hard action and dark humor. Not for everyone, but I love it. The acting is good. Brad Pitt is hilarious as boxer Mickey, who you can hardly understand. And Vinnie Jones is perfect for the role of Bullet Tooth Tony. And Benicio de Toro, who only has a small role, shows us again why he is one of the best actor of his generation. Jason Statham and Stephen Graham form a fun, not so lucky, duo.

For the fans of “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels”, this is a must see. It’s hilarious, tough and an absolute recommendation.

Rating: 4,5/ 5

00s Movie Review - From Hell

Director: Albert Hughes, Allan Hughes
Genre: Horror/ Mystery/ Thriller
Runtime: 122 minutes
Year: 2001
Starring: Johnny Depp, Heather Graham, Robbie Coltrane, Ian Holm, Jason Flemyng

Description: In Victorian-era London, a troubled clairvoyant police detective (Johnny Depp) investigates the murders of Jack the Ripper.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2023 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 34: A MOVIE THAT IS BASED ON A GRAPHIC NOVEL
 
Review: Late in the nineteenth century, the Whitechapel district of London is rocked by a series of brutal murders on prostitutes. Of the perpetrator, nicknamed Jack the Ripper, however, every trace is missing. The police seek the help of Fred Abberline, an opium-addicted inspector with psychic abilities. During his search, he comes into contact with Mary Kelly, a friend of all the victims, and a romance between the two blossoms. Meanwhile, Abberline gets closer and closer to the truth, only to discover that the killer has it in for Mary.

The unsolved Jack the Ripper case still fires the imaginations in present day and countless theories about how and why the murders occurred and the identity of the perpetrator have since been devised. But due to the lack of hard evidence, the real facts will probably remain a mystery forever.

The directing brother Allan and Albert Hughes based their film on the graphic novel “From hell” by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell, suggesting that the series of murders was politically motivated. This makes “From Hell” a fascinating, heavily stylized horror film.

Rating: 3/ 5

Movie Review - Boiling Point

Director: Philip Barantini
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 92 minutes
Year: 2022
Starring: Stephen Graham, Vinette Robinson, Alice Feetham, Ray Panthaki, Hannah Walters, Malachi Kirby, Izuka Hoyle, Taz Skylar, Lauryn Ajufo, Jason Flemyng, Lourdes Faberes, Áine Rose Daly
 
Description: Enter the relentless pressure of a restaurant kitchen as a head chef (Stephen Graham) wrangles his team on the busiest day of the year.

Review: The pressure on the chefs and waiters is well displayed in a London restaurant as chef Andy Jones must do his utmost to keep things together. A behind-the-scenes look at a busy London restaurant, it sounds like a documentary, but it isn’t. In one fluid take, the chaotic Friday night at a restaurant is depicted. Several perspectives are followed, but the anchor, our main character is chef Andy Jones. The film begins as he is on his way to the restaurant to begin his shift. “Boiling Point” manages to portray the perspectives of all the restaurant employees well. As a viewer, you sympathize with the service staff who have to deal with demanding, annoying and sometimes racist costumers, and you feel a surge of stress when seeing the struggles in the kitchen. All the people both staff and customers, feel extremely real. By the end of the film, you feel like you got to know some of these people.

Director and writer Philip Barantini has a background as an actor, restaurant worker and chef. The experience he brings with him is extremely valuable: this includes knowledge not only about food preparation, but also about the hierarchy and atmosphere in a kitchen and cooperation with the service staff. To familiarize the actors with this, Barantini had the cast watch along at various restaurants so they could properly convey the authenticity of their roles.

“Boiling Point” is a unique film and deserves all the praise it’s been getting. The actors are all fantastic and deliver realistic performances. The camera work is tremendously clever and makes the whole thing a special viewing experience. The fact that this film was done in one take just amazes me. “Boiling Point” is definitely one of the best films of 2022.

Rating: 5/ 5

90s Movie Review - Deep Rising

Director: Stephen Sommers
Genre: Action/ Horror/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 106 minutes
Year: 1998
Starring: Treat Williams, Famke Janssen, Jason Flemyng, Cliff Curtis, Djimon Hounsou, Anthony Heald, Cliff Curtis

Description: A group of heavily armed hijackers board a luxury ocean liner in the South Pacific Ocean to loot it, only to do battle with a series of large-sized, tentacled, man-eating sea creatures who have taken over the ship first.

Review: “Deep Rising” is one of those film: don’t think, just watch. And then it’s super fun!
A group of hijackers aboard a luxury yacht. When they arrive, almost all the passengers and its crew is gone. Not knowing why, they investigate the ship. But something is luring from the deep. A large man-eating sea creature is after them.
“Deep Rising” is action packed, entertaining and creepy. But it didn’t stand the test of time. The special effects are outdated and the acting is mostly terrible. I saw this film a lot around the time it was released, but rewatching it now makes me realize it’s a pretty bad film. So many clichés, bad dialogue, even worse characters. But I still really enjoy it. I liked the fact that practically all the main characters are criminals or have a criminal history. And it’s super fast paced.
“Deep Rising” is definitely not a good movie, but it’s entertaining as hell!

Rating: 2,5/ 5