Stars: Ray Winstone, Ben Kingsley, Ian McShane, Amanda Redman

Sexy Beast is best described as a cross between Snatch and Reservoir Dogs in that there is a huge amount of violence and even more swearing with both the “C” & “F” words being extremely prominent throughout the film.

Cal (Winstone) is a man who who has accumulated enough money to live well for the rest of his life through less than legal means. HAVING taken enough risks he has officially retired from crime and looking forward to spending the remainder of his days with his wife DeeDee.

Enter former partner Donald (Kingsley) after a prolonged absence and has come back to do “one last job” and needs Cal’s help to do so. Donald is an overtly dominating figure and whether it be by physical or mental means his main weapon is intimidation. His motto : “Violence begets Violence”.

Cal though has a sense of unease about the job and senses that he could lose everything if he gives into Don’s demands. Hoever, regardless of how many times he tells Don that he is not interested the physotic former partner wont take no for an answer. What follows is an intriguing battle of wits as Cal takes on Donald where only one thing is certain, one of them will die before the end of the game.

Ben Kingsley in a role far removed from that which he usually plays (ie Ghandi) is fantastic as the inigmatic and dangerous Donald. He brings a sense of evilness that has not been seen since Hannibal Lecter and you find yourself both absorbed and repulsed by his character.

THE EXTRAS

NIL as it’s only available as a rental title as this time.

CONCLUSION

Make no mistake this movie is geared towards a specifc audience and if you’re not a fan of Quentin Tarantino or Guy Ritchie then chances are you won’t enjoy Sexy Beast