RocknRolla

Rating: R

Movie Release Date: October 8, 2008

DVD Release Date: January 27, 2009

Plot 411: A shady real estate dealing go bad when a Russian's lucky painting goes missing.

Review: I'm so digging on Guy Ritchie's flicks. This is the third one I've seen and while their subject matter is always the same (some convoluted screw up involving some British crooks), it's always a pleasure. His plots are cyclical in nature and the end always leads back to the beginning. For me, his films are like the British version of the western film. There are bad guys, even badder bad guys, corruption, guns, cheating and crime. Only thing missing are the horses and the wide open plains and prairies. But throughout it all, there is loyalty among friends and a thin line of morality and honor among thieves. What I like most is that the actors always seem to go with their natural accents. No faking British or American (or even Scottish) accents. It's always an international affair. Gerard Butler stars as One Two, the leader of a small-time gang. He gets involved in stealing money for an accountant (Thandie Newton), but he doesn't know she's stealing from her boss, a Russian business man without any scruples. On the outer edges of this story, but also somehow very close to its heart, is a rock and roll singer (or rocknrolla, if you prefer) who has faked his death and has gotten ten times as famous as when he was alive.

Watch It: For a kick ass movie with a plot that twists and turns as typical of Ritchie's style.

Skip It: If you think there's going to be a ton of action or violence. There's some but this isn't really a true action flick.

Trailer: