Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels DVD > Reviews > Murder, mirth and endless mayhem

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Outstanding
Characters / Performances	Outstanding
Special Effects	Standard
Soundtrack	Outstanding

Advantages:	Every single thing is magic
Disadvantages:	Very few

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

That Guy Ritchie certainly struck gold big time with his twin assault on cinematic excellence. In 1998, Mr Madonna debuted with the wonderful Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, eventually following up with the equally special Snatch. There wasn’t much progression with Snatch, and in many ways it was just Lock Stock Episode 2 with many of the original characters reappearing only with the names altered. However, it didn’t need to move onto pastures new because Lock Stock Episode 1 was so bloody good that it could easily spawn a heir without any fear of unhappiness.

Indeed, it is one of the funniest films I have ever seen and will keep you going throughout the Director’s Cut version of a tad under two hours without even realising that the time is going by. Ritchie has a truly brilliant touch with deadpan comedy and gangster movies, and manages to bring a fresh and exciting style to his staging and camerawork with a trademark use of cutting and stills stamping things out with a truly unique style.

He was also responsible for the casting and managed to extract exactly the right qualities out of Jason Flemyng, Nick Moran, Jason Statham, Steven McKintosh, Vinnie Jones and Sting, although Dexter Fletcher is pretty much out of his depth and a bit of a let down. However, that apart, one simply can’t fault this brilliant UK gangster comedy classic.

For once the liner notes accurately capture things: “In making this film I am trying to create something that is credible and relatively humorous. Comedy and gangsters are inseparable, the truer the villain, the funnier they are, that is not to say necessarily Ha! Ha! Funny. I found that I was continually having to reign in the comedy elements so that it didn’t become too farcical. I’ve seen a few people attempt this type of film but
they’ve either failed in authenticity or they get knee deep in blood. Personally, I would rather imply violence, anyway we’ve seen it all before and I’m not interested in spilling the claret. In comparison to a Hollywood blockbuster, we always cut away from anything blatant.”

That said, Lock Stock certainly contains its fair share of violence and aggression, but does so with a wit and easy touch which makes it impossible to take too seriously. Even the bad guys on show are eminently lovable, and, while you get no one here as gripping and excellent as Brad Pitt as the Pikey in Snatch, the ensemble playing is BLOODY GOOD and just right.

One of the secrets of excellent comedy is its timelessness and ability to stand up to pretty constant replays, and certainly both Lock Stock and Snatch are so skilfully created and mixed that you can watch them again and again without fear of having enough. There are constant delights here and your attention will be rewarded time and again.

You get the same sort of multilayered and interwoven plots as Ritchie employed on Snatch and it’s the intricacy and apparently unconnected nature of events that keep you coming back begging for more, with a big time card game and a big money loss leading to all sorts of bizarre events as our hapless main characters, hardly the goodies as they’re as evil as the rest, reel from set piece to set piece in search of a way of repaying their debts.

Really, Lock Stock is just one endless stream of witty one liners and sit com scenes, but it’s done so particularly well that you never quite see the joins. This film is truly a delight which has a uniquely English and small time feel to it which is usually the sign of movie supremacy – you know, like you got with A Fish Called Wanda and Mona Lisa. It’s understated and taut and very economic with no fat or unnecessary padding – Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels is just perfect in every respect, lean and beautiful and dripping with lust, a truly excellent creation.

Some of the cussing and violent scenes will lead the more staid members of our society to quail at the thought of this film, but really that’s all part of the fun, ain’t it, kids?