Geeks logo

A Cannabis Culture created on screen.

Guy Ritchie brings his love of gangsters into the world of Cannabis and gives us his own spin on the culture.

By Kenneth BelliveauPublished 4 years ago 3 min read
Like

Guy Ritchie films tend to have an erratic tone and are filled with characters whose motives are not clear until the finale frame. The Gentlemen is no different and plays to every convention Ritchie has created for himself throughout his career.

Lead by Matthew McConaughey as Cannabis Kingpin Mickey Pearson, the film starts and ends with what appears to be a mystery surrounding a shooting only to completely blindside about half way through and create a new direction for the plot. McConaughey is smooth, quick witted and his character definitely displays a confidence only high end business men possess. He is the perfect casting choice and definitely aids in creating a tension and atmosphere that keeps you guessing from beginning to end.

However it's the pieces around McConaughey that steal the show including Hugh Grant, Colin Farrell and Charlie Hunnam. All of which prove to be more of a guidance for the plotline than Mickey himself. Mickey is the foundation on which the story is built and the three characters prove to be catalysts for the events that take place and the reasons why Mickey's empire is threatened at all.

At times it strays from telling that story with Grants character Fletcher adding a flare for the dramatic in the form of his own screenplay based on the events of Mickey's empire. That aspect seemed like one layer too many and added a little bit too much confusion to a film that had a lot of players involved and a lot of moving threads throughout. Ritchie is known for this and causes a lot of his films to be good but not great with the Gentlemen becoming another of these films.

His dialogue is often long winded and filled with monologues that don't really have a point and create confusion as to how they are relevant to the plot itself. Often times Ritchie creates amazing settings and scenarios but fails to create a level of realism surrounding how those characters speak and act. That's the biggest complaint of any Ritchie film. Wonderful concepts, poor character execution. Fletcher (Grant) and Ray (Hunnam) spend the final act of the film both producing one up Manship in the way they talk about being the smartest one in the room and the respective scenario while this takes away from the main plot. Both compliment the main story nicely but are not provided enough detail to the two that argue nonsensically about why they deserve to be the smartest character in the movie. That title should belong to the man everyone wants to take from, Mickey Pearson. When the film doesn't present him as the biggest badass and most intelligent it strays from what works which is creating tension around his ruthless intelligent business man persona.

Ritchie has a particular brand and that's something that has been your cup of tea then this one is definitely sure to check all the boxes necessary for enjoyment.

Acting- 8.5/10- Everyone plays their parts and adds layers to the ever growing plot which has a lot of moving parts. Ferrell and Grant are the standouts and McConaughey proves once again is great in lead roles. None of this is shocking in anyway but compliments the film nicely.

Writing- 8/10- As mentioned above Ritchie has his own style and he incorporated everything that has worked for him in the past. That's always a risky move because it never guarantees complete success and can often lead to people thinking he just wants to duplicate early success. In this case it works because Cannabis and the ever growing industry are relevant and the plot was built around that.

Directing- 8/10- Visually the film didn't reach immense levels of greatness. It was gritty and had some cool set pieces at times but it relies heavily on creating atmosphere with the characters and doesn't really do anything above standard shots and action sequences that make it stand as uniquely refreshing in a sub genre that has plenty to choose from.

Overall Score- 8.5/10- It's fun and quick and the dialogue at times can be long winded but it does have a solid plot line and the characters are fun and the plot gives way to creative license in a world that has a lot of moving parts and that is currently culturally relevant.

movie
Like

About the Creator

Kenneth Belliveau

I

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments

There are no comments for this story

Be the first to respond and start the conversation.

Sign in to comment

    Find us on social media

    Miscellaneous links

    • Explore
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Support

    © 2024 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.