I was very confused by what was going on for the first fifteen minutes to the point where I almost gave up watching it. Fifteen more minutes and I realize I am supposed to be confused because British gangster going legit Harold (Bob Hoskins) is confused too. Someone is blowing up his establishments and killing his henchmen and he has no idea who or why. And they couldn't have picked a worse time because he has a couple of Americans in town he wants to partner with as he enlarges the legitimate part of his business. So he has to play detective his way - very rough - while the old violent gangster in him begins to reemerge.
When I finally get to the part where the tie in between Harold's people and the IRA comes in, my reaction was - WHO???. There have been so many supporting players at that point I didn't even remember who the characters mentioned were. And I could have forgiven all of that because this film does a great job of establishing suspense and being gritty. But what I just cannot buy is that there was anybody in Britain in the late 70s who did not know what the IRA was capable of and believed that as an individual they could defeat these guys when the British army had been trying for decades - actually centuries - and could not manage it. In the timeless words of Clint Eastwood, a man's got to know his limitations.
I'd recommend it for Hoskins' and Mirren's acting and for a very young Pierce Brosnan in an almost mute part that visually ties beginning and end together quite well.
When I finally get to the part where the tie in between Harold's people and the IRA comes in, my reaction was - WHO???. There have been so many supporting players at that point I didn't even remember who the characters mentioned were. And I could have forgiven all of that because this film does a great job of establishing suspense and being gritty. But what I just cannot buy is that there was anybody in Britain in the late 70s who did not know what the IRA was capable of and believed that as an individual they could defeat these guys when the British army had been trying for decades - actually centuries - and could not manage it. In the timeless words of Clint Eastwood, a man's got to know his limitations.
I'd recommend it for Hoskins' and Mirren's acting and for a very young Pierce Brosnan in an almost mute part that visually ties beginning and end together quite well.