I like Guy Ritchie movies the most when they get pretentious. Like, I’m more keen to rewatch something like Wrath Of Man rather than The Gentlemen. And the zenith (so far) of Ritchie’s pretensions has to be Revolver (2005), his return to the gangster genre after the unsuccessful remake of Swept Away. I’ve always been curious about Revolver as it was also a misfire, a critical and commercial flop, and the brilliant review by TV Hed PE definitely further convinced me. There’s all the usual dynamics of a Guy Ritchie film, a cross-atlantic cast of predominantly dudes playing criminals with nick-names and clicking through cons and double-crosses, a circle dance of laddishness and tomfoolery. Jake Green (Jason Statham) steps out of prison into the rain after spending seven years in solitary confinement with a score to settle with the casino boss mafioso who put him there, Dorothy Macha (Ray Liotta). In the mix are two mysterious bookies who offer their help to Jake, Zach (Vincent Pastore) and Avi (Andre 3000), and there’s also a side-plot where Mark Strong does a Stanley Tucci impression to play a disgruntled assassin. What starts out like a regular con-man movie ends up feeling like you’ve accidentally bought a ticket to a self-help motivational seminar, ‘Ego Is The Mind Killer’. “Are you ready to mentally destroy the enemy within? Listen to this Jason Statham narration and find out how!” Apparently the self-seriousness of Revolver was influenced by the teachings of the Kabbalah which Ritchie’s then-wife Madonna was into at the time (the film’s wikipedia section ‘Themes’ will help decode the numerology and references employed) . The pretensions also apply to the film’s heavy sense of neo-noir style with bold colours and expansive sets, and even pulling back from a pop soundtrack to a score by Nathanial Mechaly with orchestral pieces (and even an Electrelane track in there?). All of this is completely convoluted and kind of silly, yet I was also engrossed by its strangeness, and it helps that you have Liotta pulling off another compelling villain, and Statham delivering a strong lead presence complete with greasy hair and handlebar mo over a facial hair (this might be my favourite Statham look). Available to stream on Netflix. Recommended?
VHS Tracking 