Fair warning, The Heavy is not action packed or very suspenseful. It is a pretty slow moving drama about a reluctant assassin hired to kill his own brother. There is a failed attempt to keep things interesting by scrambling the time line with a sort of Pulp Fiction feel but it doesn't work. Nothing really makes any sense, why the woman who is being held captive isn't tied up or why the crack shot needs fifty bullets to put one in the bad guy's head and so on and so forth. The script is just contrived to keep things moving along for one of the longest hour and a halves that you are likely to experience. The Heavy is a pretty well made bad movie but a bad movie nonetheless.
17 Reviews
Some factual problems with parts of the plot...
Pablo198229 December 2010
Warning: Spoilers
Whilst it is good to see some new stuff coming out of the British film industry I didn't quite enjoy this film as much as I had hoped
For one thing, Obstructive Cardiomyopathy is indeed a nasty disease and it is indeed familial. However, I spent most of the move trying to figure out exactly what Boots had to give for his brother as a heart transplant would leave him... well, dead. So this gap in the plot was too irreconcilable for me to be honest
The characters aren't too complex and seemed to float in and out of scene a little too much. more could have been revealed about Boot's past
The clocks were a nice touch
On the whole the film was watchable and made for a nice movie whilst the wife was out on a girls night out.
For one thing, Obstructive Cardiomyopathy is indeed a nasty disease and it is indeed familial. However, I spent most of the move trying to figure out exactly what Boots had to give for his brother as a heart transplant would leave him... well, dead. So this gap in the plot was too irreconcilable for me to be honest
The characters aren't too complex and seemed to float in and out of scene a little too much. more could have been revealed about Boot's past
The clocks were a nice touch
On the whole the film was watchable and made for a nice movie whilst the wife was out on a girls night out.
So bad but the last 30 minutes almost redeems it!
andy-gilligan26 October 2010
I had high hopes for this movie. The plot was a man out of jail working as a debt collector for a local business who was asked to do one last job, in order to get out of it all!! then you have his brother Christian (played by an awful Adrian Paul from the Highlander TV series) who was responsible for putting him in prison who wants to make amends for what happened. When i say "make amends" it certainly doesn't pan out in that way. More on this character later.
Gary Stretch who plays the lead character Mitchell Mason, has a good on-screen presence, but he is not a leading man. He is surrounded by some heavyweights and some seriously bad "lightweights" that actually make him look like Robert De Niro at times (no offence Bob). He tries his best but even Vinnie Jones as the corrupt cop makes him look like a cardboard cut-out as he hams up the "bad cop" role like a spit-roasted pig.
Christopher Lee and Jean Marsh are on show (yet i can't see what possessed them to want to be part of this?) play the parents and some of their scenes are so painful to watch as they are put in scenes with such awful acting that you feel embarrassed for them!
Stephen Rea does his best as an upper class bad guy but you still cringe watching the drivel script he has to deal with. Then you have Sadie Frost as a local Bar Owner (i'm not sure what this part of the film's purpose was, as it was pointless).
Then you have the worst acting I have seen in a long time. Hang on, 2nd worst!
Adrian Paul who plays Mitchell's brother Christian, simply CANNOT act, and that is an understatement. I have seen dead people show more emotion and talent than this guy. I think the director actually did him a favour in hiring the actress to play his wife as she is even worse, and that must have been tough. The acting by these 2 characters would've been perfect in an Olaf Ittenbach horror movie. Yes, its that bad!!
The storyline is all over the place as it tries to be cool and modern by going back and forth in the timelines. I think the film would have worked better if they had just done it from first date to last. I think new directors must think this works in gangster style movies but in this one it fails.
On a plus point, the scenes with Shannyn Sossamon (Claire) are the high points of the film. If only they had put more into this than they did, it could've actually been a good film. There is definitely a chemistry there between the 2 characters and they should have focused on this a lot more. I would say Shannyn's performance is one of the better ones overall.
The last 20-30 minutes of this film are actually not bad, if you can endure the first 70 minutes. But don't expect anything special with this film. You won't get it!! Best thing to do? go and dig out Going Off Big Time. Similar film but better acting, script, plot, etc.
Gary Stretch who plays the lead character Mitchell Mason, has a good on-screen presence, but he is not a leading man. He is surrounded by some heavyweights and some seriously bad "lightweights" that actually make him look like Robert De Niro at times (no offence Bob). He tries his best but even Vinnie Jones as the corrupt cop makes him look like a cardboard cut-out as he hams up the "bad cop" role like a spit-roasted pig.
Christopher Lee and Jean Marsh are on show (yet i can't see what possessed them to want to be part of this?) play the parents and some of their scenes are so painful to watch as they are put in scenes with such awful acting that you feel embarrassed for them!
Stephen Rea does his best as an upper class bad guy but you still cringe watching the drivel script he has to deal with. Then you have Sadie Frost as a local Bar Owner (i'm not sure what this part of the film's purpose was, as it was pointless).
Then you have the worst acting I have seen in a long time. Hang on, 2nd worst!
Adrian Paul who plays Mitchell's brother Christian, simply CANNOT act, and that is an understatement. I have seen dead people show more emotion and talent than this guy. I think the director actually did him a favour in hiring the actress to play his wife as she is even worse, and that must have been tough. The acting by these 2 characters would've been perfect in an Olaf Ittenbach horror movie. Yes, its that bad!!
The storyline is all over the place as it tries to be cool and modern by going back and forth in the timelines. I think the film would have worked better if they had just done it from first date to last. I think new directors must think this works in gangster style movies but in this one it fails.
On a plus point, the scenes with Shannyn Sossamon (Claire) are the high points of the film. If only they had put more into this than they did, it could've actually been a good film. There is definitely a chemistry there between the 2 characters and they should have focused on this a lot more. I would say Shannyn's performance is one of the better ones overall.
The last 20-30 minutes of this film are actually not bad, if you can endure the first 70 minutes. But don't expect anything special with this film. You won't get it!! Best thing to do? go and dig out Going Off Big Time. Similar film but better acting, script, plot, etc.
Disappointing
Dutch7329 December 2010
With a new TV for Christmas and having viewed most of the new titles out there, I was looking for something new and visually pleasing with some potential action to spice it up. After reading terrible reviews almost across the board for this movie, I came across one review that said it was a good action movie to just sit back and enjoy and that the story wasn't terrible...the reviewer must have been thinking of another movie. I was looking forward to at least some quality acting based on the cast, but it was one corny line and terrible camera angle after the other. The action was extremely limited which made the long stretches of poor story and character development even more unbearable. When the action did show up, it was quick and made even worse by the cheesy matrix style(camera following slow motion bullets with trails) it was edited with. Avoid this one if you value 2 hours of your life that you could be doing something much more productive with. I felt cheated in the end.
Dear Oh Dear.
jonathanh-780-29172926 November 2013
Warning: Spoilers
It speaks volumes that the ancient Christopher Lee and lumbering Vinnie Jones turn in the best performances in this movie; it sounded like a first read-through. The twist was predictable, the script leaden. I really do not know what kind of critical scrutiny failed to stop it being made. The gangsters wouldn't scare my mum, the rogue cop was just a caricature.
BTW, re; review above..... Boots was asked by the doctor to submit to tissue typing in order to give a non-fatal bone-marrow transplant to his brother.
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz................
BTW, re; review above..... Boots was asked by the doctor to submit to tissue typing in order to give a non-fatal bone-marrow transplant to his brother.
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz................
Dull and painful
freeride_197324 October 2010
The acting is horrendous the lead actor isn't even 1 dimensional. The politician brother's acting is worse than the new guy in your average soap.
The plot is relatively simple, it would take a good director to spin this into a decent film. Lacks drama, suspense, any humour, plot twists, it's not even violent. Quite possibly the most boring film I've ever tried to watch. It's that bad I felt the need to comment on it!
Vinnie Jones is undertaking an exercise in hamming it up.
Obviously Christopher Lee produces a good performance by default.
Christopher Lee fell out with management on the Lord of the Rings due to artistic differences and then undertakes a project like this!!!
PS the politicians wife just piped up, just when I thought I had already seen the worst performance in this film.
The plot is relatively simple, it would take a good director to spin this into a decent film. Lacks drama, suspense, any humour, plot twists, it's not even violent. Quite possibly the most boring film I've ever tried to watch. It's that bad I felt the need to comment on it!
Vinnie Jones is undertaking an exercise in hamming it up.
Obviously Christopher Lee produces a good performance by default.
Christopher Lee fell out with management on the Lord of the Rings due to artistic differences and then undertakes a project like this!!!
PS the politicians wife just piped up, just when I thought I had already seen the worst performance in this film.
Waste of an hour and 40 Min's.
mct33528 September 2011
Appalling acting as Freeride said, Stretch is an unappealing anti hero, the guy playing his brother is the worst actor i have seen in many a year, you don't really care what happens to any of them, the story line flies past at 1 mile an hour, Geoff Bell must have been stuck for work same as Christopher Lee, and Vinnie will take on any role as long as it keeps his mush on the silver screen.Avoid at all costs and save your money towards a tooth extraction, it will be more fun.
This should have gone straight in the bin and not to DVD, it is time i will never get back, and i kept thinking i have to turn this rubbish off, but i just had to see it through, it was that bad. Never tell a boxer( and the guy playing his insipid brother) he can act i think is the moral here.
This should have gone straight in the bin and not to DVD, it is time i will never get back, and i kept thinking i have to turn this rubbish off, but i just had to see it through, it was that bad. Never tell a boxer( and the guy playing his insipid brother) he can act i think is the moral here.
Not a high Five thriller , but still good though
haroon_ayyub28 March 2010
Warning: Spoilers
The whole movie is circled around two brothers. Christian Mason , a prime candidate for Prime Minister and the other one ,Mitchell mason , who has been cheated by his own family and sent to jail .
The plot is not that much strong . Still good enough to get poised into it . Vinnie Jones , the detective , was superb . I am huge fan of him .
It is actually about the life of two brothers . Christian was sent to jail because he murdered the man he caught her wife sleeping with . But his own brother stood against him and sent him to jail. And then Christian was bailed from Ranawalt who thereby got him a job which was perfect for him to take a revenge . And in the end , He got it.
The movie was good . i still think that it could have been a little better .
All in all , i would rate it 6.
The plot is not that much strong . Still good enough to get poised into it . Vinnie Jones , the detective , was superb . I am huge fan of him .
It is actually about the life of two brothers . Christian was sent to jail because he murdered the man he caught her wife sleeping with . But his own brother stood against him and sent him to jail. And then Christian was bailed from Ranawalt who thereby got him a job which was perfect for him to take a revenge . And in the end , He got it.
The movie was good . i still think that it could have been a little better .
All in all , i would rate it 6.
Amazed it was financed... didn't anybody read the script?
BazBaz00119 April 2010
This is one of those movies you really hope will be good and with a reasonable cast, should have been, i was looking forward to watching it but with a newborn son, struggled to find the time.. when i did find the time it was wasted on one of the worst films i have seen for a while (and i have seen Dear John). I thought that maybe this was one of those movies that might have had a great original script that was then bastardized by rewrites and a different directorial view, but then noticed it was written and directed by the same guy Marcus Warren, so assume he must have been happy with it, Gary Stretch who was promising in Dead Man Shoes, never seemed to go anywhere with his character who seemed to have the morals of a saint one minute and Bill Sykes the next. I have enjoyed some of the Vinnie Jones movies i have seen but always felt that he was being carried by the other cast members.. in this, he does the carrying and did what he could with the terrible dialogue, i should have known as soon as i saw idiot boy Lee Ryan in this sorry excuse of a film, maybe he is a friend of Marcus Warren who must have great friends to get this dross made in the first place!
BRITISH DRAMA PLUS SOME ACTION
nogodnomasters13 June 2019
Warning: Spoilers
This is another British organize crime movie. If you have watched these in the past, you know they do not follow the successful American formula. This movie has more plot and drama than action. There is no one dodging bullets, jumping on car roofs, or even a good chase scene. This movie has improved on past British models in that it incorporates a sound track relative to the movie. Our main character, Mitchell "Boots" Mason is an ex-con working as a debt collector for a crime boss. As the movie progresses, we discover he is not "all bad" as his occupation may suggest, but a realistic complex character. Early on he is looking at pictures of the family he lost while a Kate Bush cover song is playing in the background. As the movie goes along we discover more about Boots' past.
The plot has the predictable British twists that are too easy to figure out, perhaps a statement about how British film makers view their audience. It is nice to know Christopher Lee is still alive, but his role is minor and he doesn't bite people in the neck anymore. The movie is a step in the right direction, but don't expect a fast paced action film. No sex, no nudity. F-bomb gets dropped, fingers get cut off, and a woman is punched.
The box claims, "no innocent bystander is safe as bullets fly" is an exaggeration of the action and might, at a stretch, apply to one scene.
The plot has the predictable British twists that are too easy to figure out, perhaps a statement about how British film makers view their audience. It is nice to know Christopher Lee is still alive, but his role is minor and he doesn't bite people in the neck anymore. The movie is a step in the right direction, but don't expect a fast paced action film. No sex, no nudity. F-bomb gets dropped, fingers get cut off, and a woman is punched.
The box claims, "no innocent bystander is safe as bullets fly" is an exaggeration of the action and might, at a stretch, apply to one scene.
Glad This Dog Is Over
fredgfinklemeyer21 December 2018
12/21/2018 It should have been good, but it wasn't. The storyline??? What storyline and the shoot-em-up with Vinnie hurls chunks/really bad/SUKS gig time. Skip ahead, skip ahead, boy am I glad this thing is over. Don't waste your time.
Give it a go
macub818 June 2011
This film actually fascinated me. The cast are quite a mixed bunch and from all acting backgrounds. I was amazed to see Lee Ryan i had to do a double take but I thought his character was great and he played it well. Vinnie Jones always adds a threatening presence to the screen but this time it is on the right side of the law.Gary Stretch just plays it cool .
To summarise this up this is not your standard action film At first i struggled with the film, but after watching it all the way through realise that it has its own type of style "in a good way" and the music suits the film.Itseems to be like the European type hit men films.
Christopher Lee and Jean Marsh add some heavy names to the cast but to be honest are not on screen long enough to shine. My advice give it a chance and enjoy watching some good British actors working together.
To summarise this up this is not your standard action film At first i struggled with the film, but after watching it all the way through realise that it has its own type of style "in a good way" and the music suits the film.Itseems to be like the European type hit men films.
Christopher Lee and Jean Marsh add some heavy names to the cast but to be honest are not on screen long enough to shine. My advice give it a chance and enjoy watching some good British actors working together.
All in all, this is a decent movie.
belindar-229 August 2014
"The Heavy" was not as bad as some say. It is definitely a thriller; leaving the viewer wondering if what they think really happened. I will admit there was not enough closure, but it was a pretty good ride. The movie is slow to develop, but it gets to the point before it leaves you hungry for more. Gary Stretch was very good as the lead character. Adrian Paul also played his role very well. If you are looking for a movie that will make you want to see it twice, just to make sure you followed it correctly, then this is the one. I give it a 7/10 because I enjoyed it. The ending could have been better, but all in all, it was a decent movie.
Simply appalling
Leofwine_draca27 April 2020
Warning: Spoilers
THE HEAVY is an appalling slice of British gangster trash in a genre well known for putting out dog after dog. Most ones made a decade ago weren't this bad though, so this one must be an exception. Gary Stretch destroys any reputation he built up with DEAD MAN'S SHOES by delivering an awful performance that's all over the place as the taciturn protagonist who finds himself tasked with an impossible job and challenged by underworld figures. With awful production values, writing and direction, this is only of interest for seeing big names in small roles; why the likes of Sadie Frost, Stephen Rea and Geoff Bell decided to show up I have no idea. Vinnie Jones reprises his hardman schtick we all know well while the late, great Christopher Lee is somewhat unbelievably cast as Stretch's dad. I'm guessing the apple fell a long way from the tree here! Watch out for the awful 'bullet time' style shoot-out at the climax, so cheesy it has to be seen to be believed...
Please please .......
marklaw-3780611 January 2021
Worth watching for Vinnie's beard
JoeytheBrit21 June 2011
Warning: Spoilers
It's difficult to know where to start describing all the things that are wrong about this movie while also explaining why it was reasonably entertaining. I can understand why some (many) other reviewers felt The Heavy was an awful experience – I just can't quite share their absolute disdain for it.
Gary Stretch plays Boots Mason, an embittered ex-con with anger management issues who is employed to assassinate his own brother Christian, a politician with aspirations to one day become Prime Minister (so we know he's a bad guy right from the off). However, Christian has learned of the plot to off him and hires the thuggish Detective Dunne (Vinnie Jones, sporting a rather splendid goatee of which he seems justifiably proud) to track down the assassin.
While this is no classic by anyone's reckoning, it somehow just about manages to overcome a high quota of drawbacks in order to deliver a reasonably absorbing thriller that runs out of steam about fifteen minutes from the credits thanks largely to an overlong running time. Ex-boxer Stretch certainly has screen presence, and the camera likes his brooding, slightly battered looks, but his acting talent is limited – something of which he seems to be aware given the careful manner in which he delivers his lines. His character broods moodily for much of the film, but then he's got a lot to brood over. Vinnie Jones as his nemesis, the brutish Detective Dunn, gives a much more assured performance and effortlessly enlivens things when he lumbers onto the screen. Other familiar faces include Stephen Rea as a slimy crime baron, Christopher Lee as Boot's dad, Jean Marsh as his mum, and Lee Ryan as slimy Steve's weaselly sidekick.
Apart from its' overlong running time, the film's major stumbling block is the truly bad acting, a flaw not helped by a dull script that lacks any purpose other than to move the action on to the next scene. Given the quality of the cast, the poor standard of the acting is something of a surprise. By far the worst is Adrian Paul as Boots' terminally ill brother, whose use of inflection is so misjudged that he seems to have no idea of what he is actually saying. I've honestly seen more convincing delivery from foreign actors speaking English they have learned phonetically. Jean Marsh is also entirely unconvincing as Boots' mum.
Gary Stretch plays Boots Mason, an embittered ex-con with anger management issues who is employed to assassinate his own brother Christian, a politician with aspirations to one day become Prime Minister (so we know he's a bad guy right from the off). However, Christian has learned of the plot to off him and hires the thuggish Detective Dunne (Vinnie Jones, sporting a rather splendid goatee of which he seems justifiably proud) to track down the assassin.
While this is no classic by anyone's reckoning, it somehow just about manages to overcome a high quota of drawbacks in order to deliver a reasonably absorbing thriller that runs out of steam about fifteen minutes from the credits thanks largely to an overlong running time. Ex-boxer Stretch certainly has screen presence, and the camera likes his brooding, slightly battered looks, but his acting talent is limited – something of which he seems to be aware given the careful manner in which he delivers his lines. His character broods moodily for much of the film, but then he's got a lot to brood over. Vinnie Jones as his nemesis, the brutish Detective Dunn, gives a much more assured performance and effortlessly enlivens things when he lumbers onto the screen. Other familiar faces include Stephen Rea as a slimy crime baron, Christopher Lee as Boot's dad, Jean Marsh as his mum, and Lee Ryan as slimy Steve's weaselly sidekick.
Apart from its' overlong running time, the film's major stumbling block is the truly bad acting, a flaw not helped by a dull script that lacks any purpose other than to move the action on to the next scene. Given the quality of the cast, the poor standard of the acting is something of a surprise. By far the worst is Adrian Paul as Boots' terminally ill brother, whose use of inflection is so misjudged that he seems to have no idea of what he is actually saying. I've honestly seen more convincing delivery from foreign actors speaking English they have learned phonetically. Jean Marsh is also entirely unconvincing as Boots' mum.
...has heart
pilgrimlin6 February 2013
Sometimes I like to check out the rating of a movie that I like...and I like this movie. I like the main character/actor in this...thug with heart. As for vinnie jones, of course hes a good actor...but I never even remember that he's in this when I think of watching this movie...and I've watched it a few times, and Im watching it now over a heineken. Good ending, the music fits. I like it. To sum it up, I recently watched 'the package' with dolf and steve austin...now that was a souless boring movie that I could barely pay attention to, and I like those actors. This movie has heart...and Im guessing cost a lot less to make.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
