I went to stay with my mum and dad recently, and on our return, I pinched a huge pile of DVD's from their house and put them in order of watchability. Layer Cake came right at the top as I missed on the tele last month, and I was annoyed, so we decided to watch it last night, and I am glad that we decided to watch this one!
Please note for the purposes of this review, I will call the main character X as he is never given a name in the film.
The main story follows the life of an affulent drug dealer, X, who has both a proper job as an estate agent but is a drug dealer on the side. He does not get involved with his clients or the drug use, he merely sells the drugs on. He decides it is time to retire from the world of drug dealing, but he is contacted by a crime boss called Jimmy Price. Price wants him to sell on an enormous consignment of ecstasy pills, and find the missing addict daughter of another crime lord, Eddie Temple. He isn't happy but reluctantly agrees, and so begins a huge fight to come on top for both tasks...
As the films develops, you see many different sides to X's personality, and how his lifestyle affects him. He is clearly very good at his job, and at disgusing his other income from his friends and has a real confident air about him. The other characters, in particular X's confidantes
Morty and Gene, work well with X's character, evoking both a gritty yet fearful side of X.
The whole film is very gripping viewing. You are very quickly drawn into X's world, and follow him eagerly as he tries to offload the ecstasy pills before the Serbians catch up with him, and you will him to find the crime lord's daughter before he finds out that X could not track her down!
I did find that there were a lot of characters to keep track of in this film, and at time I had to pause the movie in order to check with my partner that it was indeed the character I presumed him to be, and which side he was on! There 3 or 4 characters who I was certain of as they appeared regularly in the film, but there were a few who popped up only at the end and at the beginning so it was a little difficult to remember who they were after all the action had happened!
The movie took place all over the UK, and there were a few shots of London and its skyline that were very artistic and fantastic looking. Quite a few places in London are shown on the film, and I felt that this added a true sense of "Britishness" to the film. All of the actors (bar the Serbians!) are either famous or up and coming British actors, which is fantastic to have a great display of British talent!
In particular I felt that the actors who played Morty and Gene, George Harris and Colm Meaney, did a superb job of their characters. They portrayed the emotions going on in these characters lives, and had a great raport with Daniel Craig, who of course played X. The background of Morty was well explored, yet we don't learn as much about Gene, which adds to the mystery of his mad character a bit more.
I will be honest, and say this is only the second film I have seen Daniel Craig in, the first being Casino Royale as James Bond. His character in Layer Cake is not totally dissimilar to Bond, yet there are parts of the character which is opposite to Bond in every way! Craig acts with a real confidence in this film, and has a great gritty element to him. He is totally believable in this world of drug dealing, and even the narrative voice when he does a voice over at the beginning and the end is superb, he keeps you hooked!
Other stars who stood out in the film to me include Michael Gambon as Eddie Temple, the man who has the missing daughter, and who ends up deeper in the world of drugs than he could have imagined. Gambon plays the character superbly, and he is so classy, he adds a real something to the film. Sienna Miller is only in the film in a couple of scenes, including the mandatory lingerie scene, but she makes herself stand out in these scenes. I would like to see her in something with a bit more depth, and as a character with a bit more dialogue!
So overall. I thoroughly enjoyed this film, as did my partner. I was not sure that I would be able to enjoy a film about the drug world with a lot of violence throughout but this film made itself enjoyable! Yes, there are very violent bits in the film perhaps not suitable for the faint-hearted and yes, the main plot involves drugs but it really is great. It really does focus more on Daniel Craig's character and his personal struggles in the drug world, and really does keep you wanting to watch more.
The film looks very glamourous, and does a great job in both keeping the realism in the film very real, yet with a sensational story which has to be seen. It really is thrilling, with an exciting police chase, nerve-wracking night time stake outs and a dark plot line. Superb viewing, if you enjoy British films, this could be one for you!
It is directed by Matthew Vaughn, and is based on the book written by J. J. Connolly. Vaughn actually won an Empire Award for Best Director for this movie. The film lasts for 105 exciting minutes, and was released in 2004. The film carries a 15 certificate, but just be aware of the themes in the film, and the violence and language also. You can buy the DVD on Play.com for £5.99. I have not personally watched the extras on the disc, but they include Commentary, Alternate Endings, Deleted Scenes, Making Of, Music Video and Storyboard Comparisons.
Cast: Daniel Craig ... X Jamie Foreman ... Duke George Harris ... Morty Colm Meaney ... Gene Kenneth Cranham ... Jimmy Price Michael Gambon ... Eddie Temple Dragan Micanovic ... Dragan
Thank you for reading!
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Andy.mack 20.03.2005 ·
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