My recent barometer for 'good movie' seems to be 'anything with Hugh Grant in'. The British actor has been on fine form in recent years – in particular in Guy Ritchie's The Gentlemen, released in 2019 on Netflix, which also happens to be leaving one of the best streaming services on 20 January. Catch it while you can – as there's only this weekend to do so!
I'd go as far as to say The Gentlemen is my favourite Guy Ritchie-directed movie of the last 25 years, as I can't sensibly claim that anything since 2000's Snatch (the sequel to 1998's Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels...) has hit quite the same heights for me. Although Ritchie does have an impressive portfolio, from Sherlock Holmes (2009) to Aladdin (2019) – he's no one-trick pony.
The Gentlemen's reception was strong enough to lead to a spin-off series on Netflix too (the appropriately titled The Gentlemen, just to confuse) – and don't forget about this other forgotten Ritchie TV show too – that I've also hugely enjoyed, and look forward to returning for season 2... even though that probably won't air until 2026.
But back to The Gentlemen, as in the movie version. I've often been surprised by the lack of higher ratings – it's 75% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a slightly higher audience score – because its ensemble cast is of premier Hollywood quality, while its script is typically Ritchie in its verbose yet hilarious form. It's all peak Ritchie irreverence, that's what – which I highly recommend.
The film stars Matthew McConaughey as Mickey Pearson, an American in London who is building a drug empire – but is looking to cash out of the business. And so begins the spiral of everything going wrong thanks to a variety of shady characters – including great stints from Colin Farrell, Charlie Hunnam, Jeremy Strong, and Michelle Dockery.
It's one hell of a cast and one hell of a lot of fun – despite the naysayers. For me, Ritchie is at his forte when dealing with the British gangster genre (if I can call it that) – especially with so much tongue-in-cheek humour among the various outlandish moments that'll keep you hooked. I think I'll watch it again this weekend just to remind myself of the laughs to be had...
