Low Budget, Big Hit

Rating: 10/10 (9 December 2008)

Film: Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) Genre:Comedy/Crime/Thriller Written and Directed by: Guy Ritchie Budget:£960,000 Box Office Sales: US: $3,897,569 International: $21,400,000 Total: $25,297,569
My Critique: Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels is one of my favorite movies. Not only is it a great film, but it gives me inspiration as an aspiring film maker. The storyline is set in England, about four guys who lose a fixed card game and owe £500,000 to a mob boss. The four of them are forced to come up with schemes to raise the money. It ties in a lot of interesting characters in an excellent storyline. Any gangster movie lover needs to own this movie. I also love how the movie was low budget and yet had such high production value. The lighting was simplistic but captivating, and the actors weren't famous, but they fit the parts perfectly. In the bonus materials you learn how they made parts of the movie. They described some of the editing techniques involved like messing with frame rate, a first experience with a stunt man, and shooting with high speed cameras. This movie was Guy Ritchie's second film and so they were pretty new to this and it gives me inspiration because I felt like I could relate to the guys in the bonus features. It showed me that I know how they made it, and I have the ability to make something just as good. You don't need an outrageous Hollywood budget to make cinematic gold. If you really like this movie, I think it compares to and rates as high as the sequel Snatch, Reservoir Dogs, and Pulp Fiction.