Layer Cake film review

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LAYER CAKE

Matthew Vaughn produced Guy Ritchie's Lock, Stock and Snatch before sitting in the director's chair himself for this British gangster film based on J.J. Connolly's book of the same name. While there's plenty fans of the first two films will recognise - dodgy geezers in shell suits, drug busts going wrong, brutal beatings in corner cafes - Layer Cake takes the genre to a higher level thanks to neat direction, a dense but worthwhile script, and several impressive performances.

Daniel Craig stars in the central role as a drug dealer who decides to carry out one last sale before retirement. Being surrounded by loyal cronies should make the job a cinch, but dealing with Jimmy Price (Kenneth Cranham), the Mr Big of the dealing side of drugs, brings it own problems. The problem with any Mr. Big, as we soon find out, is that there is always a Mr Even Bigger, who in this case turns out to be the notorious Eddie Temple (Michael Gambon). For their own reasons neither Jimmy nor Eddie want to see their main supplier leave the business.

To make matters worse, the final drug deal in Holland goes fatally wrong when Duke (Jamie Foreman) attempts to end negotiations with the Slavic sellers at gunpoint. Not a great idea, as soon there is a hitman in London determined to make our putative hero retire permanently.

With several stories packed into 105 minutes Layer Cake requires some concentration to follow all of its strands. Essentially though, while it is from the same school as Lock, Stock and Snatch, there is a greater depth to it than either previous film. While the basic story may be ordinary - the gangster trying one last raid before he stops - it is imbued with a greater sense of drama and tension that grips from the opening scene. Craig is effortlessly charismatic in the lead role and it must surely be only a matter of time before he becomes a household name, and he is provided with sterling support from Cranham, Gambon and notably Colm Meaney as a heavy with a history.