True, nearly all of the ultra-violence is hidden away from the camera, but
you don't need much of an imagination to see what's being hinted at.
McGuigan does an excellent job at producing some stomach churning reality
whilst, strangely, leaving other, obvious plot-wise, acts of violence
completely un-shown. It does perhaps serve its purpose, making
the key scene of the film so much more powerful, and, had he taken to showing
all the violence along the way, in true, bloody detail, it may have been
just too much for the average audience to handle.
It is the violence of the film which has drawn a lot of criticism, and, if
you've seen it, you'll know why. If you aren't turned with disgust at,
what must be, the longest scene of on-screen mutilation, then you may need to
seek psychiatric help. If you're worried about the use of the words "f--k" and
"c--t", you are not going to be impressed by this film.
So, what else is there apart from some excessively brutal violence and a f--k
of a lot of swear words ?
This is the story of Gangster 55, living in the modern day, surrounded
by his gangland cronies, living the life of the top man, when he hears that his
old boss is being released from prison.
Told in flashback, from the 60's, we see how Young Gangster rose, from a nobody
who knew how to handle himself in a crisis, to the elevated position he has
today - Along a path of hero worship, violence, deceit, treachery and power
craving.
It's pretty much another Kray's style, gang of the sixties, climbing and
fighting its way to the top.
McDowell does an impressive job as the gangster, thirty odd years down the
road, and Paul Bettany delivers well as his younger self. McDowell also holds
the storyline together with a strong background narrative.
The thing which I, and most others I imagine, will remember the film for is
its violent mutilation scene. This is a powerful scene which induces real
emotion.
Many are swayed by the mystique of the gangster. It doesn't take much to dream
of oneself lording over a manor where everything materialises with a click
of the fingers, and anyone who stands in the way can be dealt with by a gang of
henchmen at your beck and call.
It's easy to imagine cold blooded murder, gangland or otherwise, to be a clean,
sanitized thing - The knife goes in, it comes out again. The gun is fired, the
victim falls to the ground.
Other films have alluded to the reality of the violence which takes place,
American History X particularly, but even then, perhaps
not so disturbingly accurate as here.
Viewed from the victim's perspective, the full horror is stated graphically;
there's nowhere to hide, nowhere to run.
This should be a sobering message for anyone who's hangin' with the gang,
who has never really considered their violence for what it is.
It is a message which some will undoubtedly prefer not to see, and one which
some may wish they hadn't.
