Plot: One Two (Gerard Butler) and Mumbles (Idris Elba) plan to buy some land and to do so they boroow money from Lenny Cole (Tom Wilkinson) but when their deal doesn't fall through, they know they have to pay him back. With the help of accountant Stella (Thandie Newton) they steal 7 million Euros from European gangster Yuri to pay him back. All the while things go haywire for European gangster Yuri who lends his lucky painting to Lenny and then has it stolen by his step-son assumed dead British rocker Johnny Quid (Toby Kebbell).
Guy Ritche's films have been a mixed bag. Lock Stock And Two Smoking Barrells was very good, Snatch was good but not great, Swept Away was poor and Revolver was average. But he's back on form with this tale of gangsters, a lucky painting and a dead rock and roll star. This has everything you could expect from a Guy Ritchie film. Great cast: check, great script: check, great sound track: check and great sequences: check. And it's the cast that pulls this off very well. But it's a cracking turn from Toby Kebbell's British rocker Johnny Quid that grabs your attention. Thoughtful, dangerous, and knowledgable, he says it best when a rock and roller wants the lot. And after he steals the lucky painting, it all turns great for him.
But it's not just the painting (in an amusing twist that you NEVER see) that makes this film good. Every person in a Guy Ritchie film has a story to tell and they're told with great humor, great action and of course, great conviction. Gerard Butler and Thandie Newton are superb as business partners and of course the possibilty of something more. Tom Hardy's Handsom Bob is a great addition with a secret that exists in everyday life but is told with very good humor. Tom Wilkinson's Lenny Cole is the old school gangster who's wayward step-son is a pain in EVERYONES neck is great too. And even though Jeremy Piven and Chris Bridges have small roles too, they too have a story and it's another good addition to the film.
And of course it wouldn't be a Guy Ritchie film without some cool songs, cool gangster moments and some cool action. In a great chase sequence, One Two is chased down by two European gangster's that reminds you of a scene from The Terminator. But it's visually gripping and well put together.
Now there was one let down. The final third seems a bit out of place because of the lack of pace and humor that the first two had. It's seems to lack the great moments and interaction that the the first two thirds had. But that aside, this is Ritchie back to his best. Great film overall.
4 out of 5