The Gentlemen (4½ Stars)

I almost didn't go to see this film. I have mixed feelings about the director, Guy Ritchie. His first two films, "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels" (1998) and "Snatch" (2000) were works of genius, among my favourite films ever. After that he slumped. "RocknRolla" (2005) was awful, the Sherlock Holmes films were entertaining but average, and "King Arthur" (2017) was dull. Probably his worst film was "The Man from UNCLE" (2015), which is a stain on the memory of a wonderful TV series. "The Gentlemen" was scheduled for release in Germany two months later than in England and America, so I had time to decide if it was worth the price of a cinema ticket. The trailer didn't impress me, but critics and fans were calling it a "return to form" for Guy Ritchie, so I gave it a chance.

Wow!

From the opening minutes I was drawn in. The style of the storytelling is as enthralling as the story itself. An investigative journalist wants to blackmail an American drug lord operating in Britain, so he sits and relates what he knows. The drug lord, Mickey Pearson, wants to retire from the business of selling marijuana, and he's offered his operations for £400 million to a rival. The reporter, Fletcher, has uncovered secrets about him and offers to keep them out of the newspaper for £20 million.

The film's strength is less in the plot than in the richness of the characters portrayed. We see all levels of British society, from aristocrats to the middle class, workers and low-level drug addicts. They are credible characters, and they're amusing in the way they react to one another. I couldn't help laughing out loud at situations that were serious in themselves.

This is a must-have film for my Blu-ray collection. On the bus coming home I thought long and hard whether to give it a full five star rating. I decided against it, because it's not quite as good as Guy Ritchie's first two films. Almost, but not quite. It's possible that I'll rethink my rating after watching it again.

I expect most of my readers live in countries where the film is no longer running in the cinema. If you haven't seen it yet, wait for it to be shown on television or online. You won't be disappointed.