Guy Richie’s RocknRolla is a lot like the overpriced bag of M & M’s I consumed whilst in the cinema. On the outside, M & M’s are visually appealing; boasting a vast array of colours and an elegant little “m” imprinted on every piece to add a hint of class. The chocolates are marketed to suggest that each colour has a distinct character, be it witty Red or moronic Yellow, and the word “new” are plastered on the bag every time a different size or colour is introduced into the family. However, no matter what the colour or size, as soon as a handful of M & M’s pass beneath your vision and into your mouth, you are quickly reminded that they all taste exactly the same. The same goes for Richie’s latest British gangster flick. Once you look past the abundance of colourful characters and beyond Richie’s distinct visual style, you soon come to realise that you’re being fed M & M’s of a different kind – a Muddled & Monotonous film that fails to distinguish itself from Richie’s previous, far more accomplished, mob films of the 90′s.
Lenny Cole (Tom Wilkinson), a ruthless London mobster who claims to own half the city, forces two small time gang members, nicknamed One Two (Gerard Butler) and Mumbles (Idris Elba), into his debt through an elaborate Real Estate scam. At the same time, a Russian billionaire with the intent of building a new football stadium in London strikes a deal with Lenny, asking him to use his many connections to get instant approval for the project. However, the delivery of Lenny’s €7 million payment becomes the target of a small time gang – consisting of who else but One Two and his partner desperately seeking a way to pay off the money they owe.
Battered and Bruised: Symbolic of Richie’s emergence from his recent cinematic attempts?
The film’s spaceless title alone reveals a lot about the opening minutes of RocknRolla; there’s not a moment of pause. From the word “go”, the film hurriedly introduces you to the films over-abundance of characters through a rapid-fire voice over. During this opening sequence, Richie makes it clear that he doesn’t want you to breathe, blink or look away from the screen. It’s good advice too, if you hope to be able to comprehend the rather listless plot that follows.
The reason why the plot is made so unnecessarily complex is because it tries to include more characters than Richie knows what to do with. Many feel tacked on; such as the title character, a druggie Rock Star, who suddenly becomes involved in the story at the half way mark for some inexplicable reason. The entire cast do a commendable job considering, most of whom avoid turning in archetypal performances that are usually inherit with a Guy Richie gangster film. However, with such a plethora of characters and sub-plots fighting for screen time, they are barely given a chance to engage with the audience. As a result, the film comes across as an over-long mish-mash of scarcely linked sub-plots that work only to mask the primary plot, whatever that might be.
As muddled as RocknRolla may be, one must commend Richie’s visual style. The heart pounding intro, consisting of a unique and rapid camera movements and a thumping soundtrack, would probably get the residents of a morgue excited. However, once the opening montage fades out and the dialogue heavy scenes take over, Richie’s film is anything but Rockn’…it’s actually quite a drag.
Aside from some genuinely witty scenes of dialogue, most of the film suffers greatly from sporadic pacing. With such a high-octane opening montage setting the scene for a film that exists within a genre noted for its mature content, there’s a bizarre absence of action and excitment in the RocknRolla. Blink and you’ll miss the films singular sex scene, which completely arrives out of left field as though it’s a part of a romantic sub-plot tacked on at the last minute. Even those strong willed individuals who do retain interest throughout the film, hoping that the many loose ends are tied off neatly, will no doubt be disappointed by the anti-climatic payoff that results.
Conclusion:
Returning to the motif of this review, RocknRolla is a lot like a bag of M and M’s; visually interesting to begin with, but a bland and repetitive experience overall. It’s a true testament to the saying that style is nothing without substance. Despite some solid performances and unique cinematography, the film is plagued by poor pacing and an over abundance of characters and subplots. It’s certainly better than what Richie has offered up recently, but you’d be hard pressed to find anything that’s not.
[rating: 2/5]
Follow the author Anders Wotzke on Twitter.
