Gypsies Tramps and Thieves And One Dog

Rating: 9/10 (25 August 2014)

Following through the success of "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels", Guy Ritchie may have very well outdone himself here. What usurps this film compared to Ritchie's previous outing is that "Snatch" has more comedy provided. And even though there are more characters provided the story is far more easy-going.
Our journey begins with a boxing promoter named Turkish (Jason Statham) and his business accomplice Tommy (Stephen Graham) are privately talking about diamonds. As the credits get underway,in Antwerp, Belgium we see four thieves going incognito as Jewish men as they make their ways to the eighth floor of a building. Once they reached the floor, the thieves now have possession of an 84 carot diamond. The leader, Franky Four Fingers (Benicio Del Toro) leads the troop as he delivers the diamond to his cousin Avi (Dennis Farina). He has days to spare in London where he's asked to meet Boris the Blade (Rade Serbedzija) to obtain a gun from him and place a bet on a crooked boxing match. Franky handcuffs his hand with the diamond placed on his hand in a briefcase, when suddenly the van was hit and he was out cold.
In another subplot (that spells Tarantino), Turkish and Tommy have signed on a gifted, but brainless boxer name "Gorgeous" (Adam Fogerty). Turkish and Tommy purchased a caravan from a band of gypsies, oblivious to the fact that easily breaks down the minute they purchased it. While demanding for a refund, George demands a fight with "One Punch" Mickey O'Neill (Brad Pitt) and if he wind they will get their refund. But Mickey easily knock out George, which leads to Turkish negotiating with Brick Top (Alan Ford) if they recruit Mickey in exchange for George. But will only do it if Mickey goes down in the fourth.
The third subplot has Boris not being able to get any communication from Franky, so he asks Sol (Lennie James) along with Vincent and Tyrone (Robbie Gee and Ade) to get in touch with him. When they finally reach him, he's been shot unintentionally and tribulations come into full effect when the dog enter the fray.
The performances were overall very enjoyable. Jason Statham has one-upped himself here and plays a more prominent role here. Brad Pitt is really fascinating as a gypsy who talks incoherently. Alan Ford truly was delightful as a crime boss and Benicio Del Toro was remarkable as a thief who suffers from a horrible gambling addiction. He truly makes up for his role, even though it's quite limited. Ritchie's direction has improved greatly from "Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels". The shots delivered are more bigger and the boxing scene is very well produced.
The script was quite impressive in humour and wit. The story may have numerous subplots, but it flows along very easily and is not hard to follow. It's also very rewarding to see it many times and it never gets stale, plus you see new things through every viewing. It's good that three cast members from its predecessor returns a second time through.
Like "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels", the soundtrack has a variety of songs like old school Jewish music to more modernized (at least early 21st century music) like Oasis. What steps up in "Snatch" is the quicker pace and the action never once slows down and never overdoes it with the plot twists. I think between the two Guy Ritchie films, this one is much more compelling. The key component to why it's better is that there's more characters to get to know and you have a better understanding to where each one of them is coming from. The only gripe I have with this movie is the length. It's a bit too short. And it's not a burden to the film, but many characters who I enjoyed didn't get enough screen time, so I was hoping it would have been longer.
This movie overall, stands out for a near perfect film. Even for a heist movie, the performances and the script also stood out. The plot is enigmatic as one subplot overlaps with another like "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels". Even though the setting of the movie is in London, England and a bit in Antwerp Belgium but wouldn't it be cool if it was set in New York? What more can I say? Watch the film, I guarantee you won't be disappointed.