Film: Lawless

 

On "cheap Tuesday" at our local cinema, a picture can be enjoyed for a mere £3. At this price, you can afford to take a punt on film like Lawless, which has received very mixed reviews in the presses. I'm not sure what the critics were expecting of this type of movie but I thought it delivered the goods in spades. 

The movie tells the tale of a band of three brothers who are bootlegging moonshine in the prohibition era, when the Chicago boys move in to take over the action, corrupting the cops in the process. One element that some folk may have found wanting could be the absence of proper heroes. Afterall, the three brothers (the main characters) are also criminals. To me however, this misses the point, as the same point could be made about films like the Godfather. 

If what you want is a strong, well acted, well rounded gangster film, where the importance of brotherhood and family feature heavily, this is one for you. Like most gangster pics set in this era, you can expect a lot of violence, a sense of foreboding and an array of exaggerated chracters, the best being the almost Hannibal Lecter like Guy Pierce as the menacing villain of the piece. The star of the show, however, is Tom Hardy, playing his usual invincible self.

**** (ending could be improved a bit)