Rock N Rolla [UMD for PSP]

Description

Writer/director Guy Ritchie bounces back from the subpar Revolver with RocknRolla, proof that all rapidly edited, tough-talking, plot-twisting gangster movies are not the same. Two low-level hoods (Gerard Butler of 300 and Idris Elba from The Wire) try to get into real estate, only to run afoul of a much bigger crook (Tom Wilkinson, Michael Clayton)--who, thanks to the machinations of a bored accountant (Thandie Newton, Crash), runs afoul of some very nasty Russian mobsters. But at the center of this web is drug-addled punk rocker (Toby Kebbell, Control), who unexpectedly proves to be just as adept at violence, scheming, and smartass quips as anyone else. Everyone seems to be having an infectiously good time; the convoluted plot holds together just enough to keep the action flowing smoothly, though when it's over you'll be hard-pressed to explain how one event led to another. What's most curious about the movie is how Ritchie is completely uninterested in women, even as sex objects. RocknRolla features what must be the most perfunctory heterosexual sex scene in movie history, while lavishing attention on muscular chests, tough mugs, and manly banter. RocknRolla is candy entertainment, fun and fizzy while it unfolds, disposable the moment it's over. There's nothing wrong with that; if all pop cinema was this energetic and cheerful, we'd be living in a much more entertaining world. --Bret Fetzer