Layer Cake

When it comes to British Gangster flicks I would say Frank is probably the expert. I saw this because I was hungry...no I saw this because I am trying to see as many Tom Hardy films as possible...I didn't realize that it was Matthew Vaughn's first film and forgot that Daniel Craig was in it and I was pleasantly surprised that Dumbledore makes a cameo.

First on Tom Hardy...you can tell with his limited role that this guy has charisma...Russel Crowe charisma?....maybe not the tough guy/angry side of Crowe that we all discovered in LA Confidential...but Hardy has this boyish rogue charm with a hidden strength...maybe close to a young Harrison Ford. As Clarkie he was good and I was satisfied...but the real star is Daniel Craig...pre-Bond and pre-stealing Rachel Weitz away from Darren Aronofsky (although lately I am convinced she wanted to be married and he did not...so she found a man that would marry her...where was she like 10 years ago when I was single and free to mingle?)...anyway...Layer Cake has Craig as a man with no name...funny...it took the last line in the film for me to catch that...I had to watch it with the subtitles on to understand this variety of English accents...I love the English but once they don't have to kowtow to American audiences they really let the accent fly in various directions...take Trainspotting and any Guy Ritchie film for example...I have not seen Snatch or Rock n Rolla yet (RNR is next on my Tom Hardy films)...but this was a plot that keeps the twists coming...over and over again...its tough to keep up...it's like those ball under the hat games at the ball park...the 3 hats move around a lot and you can get confused...but if you concentrate (and have subtitles on) and watch for the middle you and always find the ball...or in this case the plot of Layer Cake. PLUS