Formal Film Study

Formal Film Study

            For my formal film study I chose to do British gangster films as my topic. For this topic I chose three greats, Lock Stock by Guy Ritchie, Layer Cake by Mathhew Vaughn and Snatch by Guy Ritchie as well. I chose these films because I feel as though they represent the British gangster genre very well. Guy Ritchie known for his subtle comedy and riveting action was actually very similar to Mathhew Vaughan and I think that’s where the classic theme of a British Gangster comes into play.

             American gangster films are known for of course for violence, important and distinguished rules, a hierarchy and some sort of family and british gangster films are no exception to this tradition. However British gangsters have a bit different of a feeling when watching them in comparison to the godfather, goodfellas etc.

            Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, a Guy Ritchie film was absolutely outstanding. You have pot dealers, guns, massive british men and a lot of money involved. The plot follows three guys who just get involved with the wrong men, they end up owing big bucks to a very impatient man and the film follows them for the next week. One thing I liked about this film was the cinematography, its got almost a yellow tint to the whole film which gives it a somewhat of a vintage feel. Also one thing that stuck out was the directors film style. The camera swings a lot, there’s a lot of close ups, a lot of emotion and I feel as though the camera angles used are very personal and very realistic. Overall, Lock Stock is a must see.

            Snatch is a great film as well. It was actually Guy Ritchies follow up to Lock Stock which is rather surprising with the feel of the film. This film deals with all the same as Lock Stock, the guns, the money, the violence, but this film works around a diamond, not a load of cash. It follows a group of guys who again get mixed with the wrong crowd. The aspect of this film I most enjoyed was the humor, the cast , and the cinematography. You get a certain amount of humor in Guy Ritchie films that really fits in with this whole gangster scene very well. The cast is phenomenal, Brad Pitt, Del Toro and Jason Statham really make this a fun movie to watch. Overall, this film is worth your time.

            And lastly is Layer Cake. This film breaks away from that classic british style just a tad, however that may be just that I have become accustomed to the Guy Ritchie style. It follows Daniel Craig (who by the way is amazing). This film I find to be a little more Americanized mostly due to the film and directing style. Its more steady, consistent and precise, it doesn’t have that gritty, biting the tongue feeling that I find very enjoyable in a British film. Overall, this film showed great film style for what was put on the screen, maybe not very traditional, but definitely a film to see on a Sunday night.

            What I found to be common between British gangster films was pretty cool and definitely unique to the brits. You have a very gritty, nonchalant feel the whole movie. You get the quiet awkward moments, the rough accents, the excitement of bare knuckle fighting more so than gun fights, and a very masculine feel. Theres no hiding in British gangster films, they are go getters and they like to hit you with everything they got, some humor, some punching and a hell of a lot of F bombs. If you’ve only seen American or Italian gangster films you really need to check out British ones. Actors like Jason Statham and Marcel Iures keep the action, the cuss words and the style flowing.