Day 123 - Legend



Day 123          Legend [2015]

                          
Screenplay                    Brian Helgeland
Based on                       ‘The Profession of Violence’ by John Pearson
Director                         Brian Helgeland
Cinematography            Dick Pope
Music                            Carter Burwell
Leads                            Tom Hardy, Emily Browning, David Thewlis, Paul Anderson, Christopher Eccleston, Taron Egerton, Chazz Palminteri, Paul Bettany
Production                     Cross Creek Pictures, StudioCanal, Working Title Films

IMDb                                7/10
Rotten Tomatoes               61%

Underwhelming. Maybe I watched the wrong Tom Hardy film. I was sure someone recommended this to me. Perhaps I was thinking of Locke. The acting is actually pretty bloody good in this and without it I think they may have had a flop on their hands. Hardy I think will go down as, not only one of the best British actors of all time, but one of the best actors ever. The supporting actors were all excellent too, in particular the up and coming Taron Egerton and Emily Browning, as well as seasoned pros Thewlis and Peaky Blinders’ Anderson, I also enjoyed the brief cameo by Paul Bettany who will always be one of my favourite actors for his performances in Wimbledon and A Knights Tale. The music wasn’t bad, I even heard a couple of my favourite songs in there, although I don’t think they complimented the scenes they were in. This film had so much potential, a British gangster movie set in the 60s, with a stellar cast and crew and based on a true story. Maybe the story itself was hard to exaggerate upon, but I found myself a bit bored with it. As much as I loved Hardy’ performance as both of the evil Kray twins, the story itself felt drawn out and lacking in action. I think a little more artistic licence was needed. It’s not a bad film, but had I gone to the cinema to see it I think it would have been money wasted. There are better British gangster films out there but watch it for the acting, if nothing else.

Acting                            4 / 4
Writing                           2 / 4
Cinematography             2 / 4
Music                          2.5 / 4
HWF rating             2.5 / 4

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