Guy Ritchie's latest film is a gangster comedy which follows self-made Mickey Pearson (Matthew McConaughey) who is an American marijuana dealer and happily married to Rosalind (Michelle Dockery) who is described as a "cockney Cleopatra) who is just as tough as her husband. Mickey who is now middle-aged, wants to liquidate his weed-farm empire. He has interested buyers including Jewish-American billionaire Matthew Berger (Jeremy Strong) and Chinese mobster known as "Dry Eye" (Henry Golding).
We learn about all of Mickey's plans through a screenplay written by the sleazy private investigator and aspiring screenwriter Fletcher, played by Hugh Grant. Fletcher relays all the information in his screenplay to Mickey's right-hand man Raymond (Charlie Hunnam). This screenplay is a blackmailing device with which Fletcher hopes to exploit Mickey.
The Gentlemen is incredibly entertaining and by using the film within a film device, we aren't sure what the ending is going to be, while also getting some surprises along the way. The casting in this film is brilliant and quite amusing. Seeing Hugh Grant become an East End sleazy investigator is hilarious to watch. This a character that a lot of people hasn’t seen him do before yet he fits this role excellently. Grant is hilarious from start to finish and now it makes us want to take on more characters like this in the future.
McConaughey puts on a strong performance as Mickey Pearson and our central character. The performance between McConaughey and Dockery is mesmerising, their chemistry is strong and we believe that these two are a true power couple. Nothing really makes Mickey panic except when one of his farms is raided by a group of grime-loving teens who called themselves "The Toddlers". This scene is amusing to watch but what makes it even better is the introduction of Coach, played by Colin Farrell. He is "The Toddlers" Irish boxing coach, whom the boys look up to. Farrell's performance is incredible, he brings most of the humour, so when he is in a scene you know that he will make you laugh. All the characters are amazing and great to watch but Coach is a particular favourite for many as he makes you laugh out load. A scene in particular involves Coach, Raymond and someone in the trunk of his car and this scene showcases how funny the character Coach is.
Grant as Fletcher and Hunnam as Raymond work really well together. Hunnam does a great job and is consistent throughout the film. Raymond comes across as a stereotypical English gentleman yet at times he appears tougher and more dangerous than Mickey but this might just be the case that we rarely see Mickey get his hands dirty and Raymond does all the work. Hunnam is really strong as his character, he appears calm constantly yet he is highly intelligent and working out what his next move will be. It is a joy to watch Hunnam as this character especially as he works so well alongside Grant, Farrell and McConaughey.
Guy Ritchie's films always have complex storylines and anyone we meet or any information we are given is always important. A character we meet and think nothing of is more important that we realise. As a result, the ending is surprising yet as this film is so enjoyable you want it to end either. We want to see what will happen next and what certain characters do.
Ritchie has done an amazing job with this film; it looks perfect and the casting is a mixture of surprising but extremely enjoyable. Certain lines you do question if they are necessary but they fit with the overall theme of the film. The performances from the entire cast are faultless. The Gentlemen is the kind of film which you can watch again and again and still find it enjoyable, no matter how many times you saw it.
