What is a “RocknRolla”? Before watching the film it didn’t occur to me the question was a matter of who or what. But in fact, the nature of a RocknRolla, the true nature, finds itself to be the goal of the film’s protagonists.
Guy Ritchie has got a thing for portraying bottom feeders reaching up and taking a bigger piece of the pie. Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels all had a band of guys pursuing a wild scheme to make it big – RocknRolla is no different, and yet it is. While the older two films had their share of characters in the upper rungs of society, half of RocknRolla’s main characters fit that bill. Why shouldn’t it? It’s a gritty crime comedy about real estate. Yes, real estate. I swear, in the hands of anyone else this would’ve been the most boring movie I can imagine. Guy Ritchie pulls it off.
Old money and new money collide in London’s ballrooms and backstreets. Lenny Cole (Tom Wilkinson), a man who’s got London in his pocket, strikes up a real estate deal with Russian investors only to find himself in over his head when the painting given to him in good faith goes missing and the Russian gets upset. On the other end of the deal is One Two (Gerard Butler) and his gang of misfits tasked with various odd jobs by a renegade accountant (Thandie Newton). Before One Two knows what’s happening he finds himself struggling to pay off a real estate deal gone bad while under the gun of the Russian investor’s henchman. All of this trouble could have been avoided if only Lenny’s junkie son-in-law Johnny (Toby Kebbell) hadn’t stolen the painting. The number of entwining storylines in RocknRolla is typical of Guy Ritchie films and like always it demands you pay attention to who’s on which side.
The performances in RocknRolla stretch past tongue in cheek and reach full-blown over the top comedy. It’s no accident, while Ritchie’s past films have maintained that thuggish mentality, RocknRolla’s adoption of higher social players requires the tough guy talk give way to a weird hybrid of polite doublespeak and double entendres – especially with Thandie Newton.
Gerard Butler as the protagonist works on a variety of levels. Was I saddened that Ritchie’s typical gang of Jason Statham and Vinnie Jones didn’t return? Sure, but the new regulars pull off the job well enough. Tom Wilkinson bolsters the cast and, with Mark Strong, provides a solid repartee of old school Brit gangster. The cast’s ability to bandy about the quick dialogue makes RocknRolla what it is – which only makes sense considering they cast Jeremy Piven, a man who’s made a name for himself spinning sarcasm at incredible speeds. RocknRolla is as much about quality as it is quantity. They brought a good story to the screen with a plethora of plotlines and even more characters. When the end titles roll, it’s no wonder there’s a statement of sequel flashed on the screen. Ritchie knew he had a good script and cast and I wouldn’t be surprised if The Real RocknRolla hits theaters promptly.
RocknRolla stands out in Ritchie’ filmography. Not as the best, but certainly in the top 3. The Blu-ray presentation of RocknRolla brings Ritchie’s gritty style into an amazing clarity. While his past have always involved low lighting and lens modifications, RocknRolla does away with all that to shoot the film in a straight up cinematical style you’d see from the average filmmaker. It’s not a sacrifice of style but rather an accommodation – an admission that in RocknRolla it’s no longer just the dregs of London scavenging for a pound here and there but everyone.
Blu-ray Bonus Features
Besides a few deleted scenes of little consequence there are two rather interesting featurettes, “Blokes, Birds and Backhanders: Inside RocknRolla” and “Guy’s Town”. The former takes the viewer behind the scenes of the making of RocknRolla and features interviews with the cast and crew of RocknRolla. Although short, “Blokes, Birds and Backhanders: Insider RocknRolla” is pretty entertaining just to hear what Ritchie and the cast thought about the film they were making. As if to further cement the certainty of the sequel everyone seems to be incredible enthusiastic and enjoying the time on set – so here’s hoping. “Guy’s Town” admittedly features some footage overlap from the first but deviates by concentrating less on the cast and crew and more on the setting: London. London’s cityscape plays a rather large part in the film beyond just being the object of everyone’s monetary aspirations. The film is quite active and takes you into the darker heart of the city while still embracing the up and coming high rises that are relatively new to the city planning. “Guy’s Town” not only shows off London but allows Guy to talk about how the essence of London affected shooting and various other aspects of the film.
Additionally, the extra audio-commentary is worth the listen – even if you only moderately enjoyed the film. Hearing Guy Ritchie and Mark Strong harp on some of their favorite scenes to film and small little background secrets is quite interesting. They’ve got a good presence for the audio commentary.
If you’re a fan of Guy Ritchie’s other films, RocknRolla will more than satisfy you. If you’ve got a thing for dry or British humor, RocknRolla will more than satisfy you. RocknRolla delivers in all the right places it’s easy to recommend for almost anyone – so go take a look.
"RocknRolla" is on sale January 27, 2009 and is rated R. Action, Comedy. Written and directed by Guy Ritchie. Starring Thandie Newton, Tom Wilkinson, Gerard Butler, Mark Strong, Jeremy Piven.
