.. |
SNATCH
Review by Gordon Justesen
Stars:
Benicio Del Toro, Dennis Farina, Vinnie Jones, Brad Pitt, Rade Sherbedgia, Jason Statham
Director: Guy Ritchie
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Surround, French Dolby Surround
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1, Standard 1.33:1
Studio: Columbia Tri Star
Features: See Review
Length: 103 Minutes
Release Date: July 3, 2001
Whats a gun doing in your
trousers?
Its for protection.
Protection from what? Ze Germans?
Film ****
Snatch
is brilliant, full-blown proof that Guy Ritchie is Englands answer to Quentin
Tarantino. Although the thugs depicted in Tarantinos movies arent necessary
the smartest of all people, the ones in Ritchies films seem to be more inept by
comparison. The directors freshman effort, 1998s Lock, Stock, and Two
Smoking Barrels, was dubbed a disgrace to criminals everywhere, and Snatch is in the same vein in displaying criminal activity of
the most unbelievably incompetent manner, making it a violent, hugely funny joyride. What
helps boost Snatch to a higher level of enjoyment is the blazingly
original use of flashy camera work and quick-as-a-wink editing.
Many
critics felt that for Snatch, Ritchie
had essentially taken his first movie and completely recycled it for a mainstream
audience. He may have done so, but Snatch exceeds
Ritchies previous film by a lot, because for the sole reason that every single
minute of the movie is purely energetic and remains that way for the entire film. Like Pulp Fiction, we are
given a colorful array of characters, who are all in pursuit of a diamond the size of a
babys fist. Turkish
(Jason Statham), who also serves as the films narrator, is a boxing promoter who is
unwillingly pulled into the story. The diamond is initially stolen in Antwerp by Franky
Four Fingers (Benicio Del Toro), who brings it to London. Once there, it is hotly pursued
by the likes of an American "businessman", Cousin Avi (Dennis Farina), his
blustering British cousin, Doug the Head (Mike Reid), and his hard-nosed sidekick, Bullet
Tooth Tony (Vinnie Jones). Also in the hunt are ex-KGB agent Boris the Blade (Rade
Serbedgia), sadistic crime boss Brick Top (Alan Ford), and a group of inept thieves with a
pet dog. To further complicate matters, we are introduced to bare-knuckle boxer Mickey
O'Neil (Brad Pitt), whose fortunes become integral to the convoluted narrative's eventual
resolution. Other characters who are thrown into the mix are Tyrone (Ade), Sol (Lennie
James), and Vinny (Robbie Gee); three bumbling pawn store workers who also acquire a
chubbish dog who actually comes to play as a most important plot element.
Ritchie is a
unique pro at frequent fast cuts and quick edits to convey a lot of information in a short
time, such as when Cousin Avi flies back and forth between the U.S. and the U.K., and he
occasionally rewinds the story to show an event from a different viewpoint, such as a
riveting scene involving a car accident, which is depicted first from the inside, then,
moments later, shown again from the outside. And like Tarantino, he finds the perfect
spots to illustrate how violence can be used as comedy, such as the use of guns called
replicas, and the frequent demise of a character who according to the movie, is impossible
to kill. Most of the violence is indeed graphic, but about 75% is used for a comedic
effect, which is riveting in its own.
As
complicated as the plot is, Im amazed that I was able to cover much of it, but Snatch
is dynamite entertainment at its very best. This is simply an amazing cast, including
scene-stealing performances from Dennis Farina and Vinnie Jones, who are unexpectedly
paired together for some of the films most funny scenes, and then theres the
amazing performance from Brad Pitt, who is very hard to understand, but the DVD thankfully
threw in subtitles to detect what exactly he was saying. Snatch is by far one of
this years greatest movies, and an illustration that Guy Ritchie is a rising
brilliance here in states.
Another
superb video job from the folks at Columbia Tri Star. The disc includes both the
anamorphic widescreen version, as well as the full frame version (something the studio
hasnt acquired for quite some time). The picture is sharp and crisp, and deprived of
any flaws whatsoever. Colors appear low-key, as they are intended to appear, and the image
is thoroughly lively.
The disc
includes a Dolby 5.1 soundtrack, and the result is thus far, one of the best sounding
discs you will come across this year. The imaging is coherent and when you have these
kinds of accents that is something to be proud of. The soundtrack is completely perfected
in this transfer, fueled with music ranging from techno to funk-like rhythms. Action
scenes are terrifically perfected as well. A pat on the back to CTS, as this is one of
their greatest sounding discs ever!
Columbia Tri
Star should also congratulate themselves on packaging one of their best lists of extras in
history! The first disc offers a scene specific commentary by Guy Ritchie and producer
Matthew Vaughn. Its a well-done track with details to amuse both the hard-core
technical fans and the people interested in details about the film. Ritchie has a damn
fine sense of humor and he manages to keep the track interesting. The second feature of
relevance is one called STEALING STONES, where the viewer can elect to play the deleted
scenes during the film where a diamond appears.
On disc two,
we have MAKING SNATCH, a 25-minute look at the movie and this documentary goes beyond the
usual P&R stuff. Its a fast paced look at the making of the film with all the
naughty bits intact. You also have Ritchie playing chess and discussing the film. There
are also several deleted scenes (which are also part of the STEALING STONES feature),
which can be played with or without director commentary. The disc also includes storyboard
comparisons that can be viewed as a whole or side by side with the film. The final extras
are a video photo gallery, which is a five-minute sequence, which is edited together with
music, and trailers for this film, as well as these other CTS releases: Dogma, Go, The
Professional, Dr. Strangelove, The Lady From Shanghai, and the upcoming theatrical
release, John Carpenters Ghosts of Mars.
Summary:
A great
movie, and a great DVD release to match, Snatch is sure to make for a grand evenings
worth of blazing entertainment. Truly one of the best films of this year, as well as DVDs!