The Gentlemen (2020) | Film Review

After taking over a decade off to focus on more blockbuster fare like Aladdin and Sherlock Holmes, Guy Ritchie returns to the genre that made him a household name in cinema circles: the tough guy crime caper comedy thriller. Is that a genre? It surely feels like it is in Ritchie’s hands as one-liners fly faster than punches and double crosses whenever he puts his personal vision on screen. Films like Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels are Ritchie’s bread-and-butter, and he’s assembled an all-star cast to again deliver the goods in The Gentlemen.

After many successful years as a weed manufacturer and distributor, Mickey Pearson (Matthew McConaughey) wants out. Always a step ahead of the game, Mickey has amassed an enviable operation that has managed to avoid the eyes of authorities and therefore carries with it a mighty price tag of $400 million. Matthew (Jeremy Strong) is a mainstream suitor intrigued by the premise, while Dry Eye (Henry Golding) comes from the criminal underworld and aims to procure the purchase for his own organization. You can probably surmise, this endeavor will not go down smoothly.

Facilitating the sale – and handling much of his ongoing business calamities – are Mickey’s wife, Rosalind (the lovingly wicked Michelle Dockery), and right-hand man, Raymond (Charlie Hunnam, kicking his star wattage to an eleven). Along the way, and aiming to pay down a massive debt, an assist is given by Coach (Colin Farrell, proving yet again he’s a far better supporting player than lead) and his downright dubious solutions to the most insane problems. Lastly, Hugh Grant’s private detective turned blackmailer and narrator arrives in Fletcher.

Guy Ritchie has once again assembled a helluva cast to tell his sordid tale and not a one of them fails to rise to the challenge, therefore everyone’s game is elevated. In fact, this assortment of Brits and wankers who aren’t Brits are probably the strongest cast of any previous Ritchie caper. Surprisingly, as the badass head of a criminal empire, McConaughey – one of the coolest actors on the planet – is frequently lapping at the heels of Charlie Hunnam for sheer charisma as Hunnam dominates each and every scene he’s in. And just as you’re ready to give Hunnam the crown, in walks Dockery or Grant or Farrell or Golding with one more sordid take on a vast assortment of 4-letter words. Most of them beginning with C.

For a film so well cast, it’s a shame the script feels so “been there, done that”. What seemed fresh 15-20 years ago, screams tired and frustrating in 2020. Imagine if Tarantino were dropping variations of Pulp Fiction in today’s market. The Gentlemen even opens with a scene of ominous violence from much later in the film, then jumps to Fletcher recapping previous events to get us to a point of balance, and then continues to bounce around time and storylines with all the focus of a cocaine-fueled puppy farm. This is a recycled story that unfortunately settles for clever over consistent far too often.

All told, Guy Ritchie has an obvious love for this genre, and has a definite knack for it as the film is frequently entertaining in a “Redbox and Chill” kinda way. But with a stellar cast who arrived on set ready-to-play, it’s a shame The Gentlemen’s script ends up feeling like Journey’s Greatest Hits album rerecorded long after Steve Perry hit the bricks.