Barney Thomson (2015) User Reviews

Solidly entertaining directorial debut from Robert Carlyle

[Red-Barracuda · 7/10 · 17 June 2015]

This crime-comedy is lead actor Robert Carlyle's directorial debut. In it he plays the title character who is a late middle-aged barber living a life of humiliations who accidentally kills his boss after an argument, leading to a chain reaction of ever worsening events.

Typified by distinctive on-location shooting in the east end of Glasgow, this is a pretty good effort all round. It benefits from some effective comic acting by its cast, aside from Carlyle himself the two other standouts are Ray Winstone as a cockney cop displeased to be stationed north of the border and, best of all, working under heavy make-up Emma Thompson is very convincing as Carlyle's elderly Glaswegian mother; as per usual she puts in fine work here and nails her character pretty firmly. The plot-line isn't really massively interesting to be fair and, instead, the film works as a character-driven comedy. Fortunately, the characters are, for the most part, well-drawn and the comedy is often pretty funny. Things are ultimately rounded off with a finale that is perhaps a little predictable once the basic set-up is established but for this it can be forgiven. All-in-all, while it doesn't exactly break the mould, this film is still a pretty solid bit of fun.

Quite funny and very dark

[latinfineart · 7/10 · 12 December 2020]

If you appreciate a good black comedy as much as I do, you will enjoy this flick. It was well done. I give Carlyle a lot of credit for his directorial debut with an excellent performance by Emma Thompson, who was a riot.

Overall it was quite a nice ride, very entertaining stuff. If you don't have a sense of humor, you will not get this film at all.

Aye

[eryui · 7/10 · 7 February 2016]

This is a funny noir comedy, well made with an excellent cast. I really like Carlyle so I could not be completely impartial.

It is a film that gives you some laughs, but it does not let you to yell to miracle. I don't see it as a cult movie (like could be "The Full Monty" to me) as I have read here in the comments. It needed something more.

The actors and the dialogue are the masters here, but also the scenery, the photograph is taken care of. It is well packaged but the plot is not very thorough, it might have been better use the element of surprise and a few more dialog jokes would not hurt at all too. It is not very exciting and it feel like a little flat.

In any case, the movie has managed to put a smile on my face from beginning to end giving me a few very good laugh.

A good debut for Carlyle as a director with some space for improvement.

It should be 7/10 to me.

Full with irony, wallowing and bitterness, Barney Thomson is a comedy for an acquired taste

[quincytheodore · 6/10 · 8 February 2016]

The titular Barney Thomson (Robert Carlyle) is a less than friendly man, he complains about many things and is generally unapproachable. One day he stumbles upon a series of hazardously unfortunate events which lead him into awkward world of crime. This is a very distinct style of comedy, which can be poignantly funny at times, but also riddled with tons of profanity and can be even resentful, thus it probably caters to more adult audience.

Acting is sharply over-the-top as Barney wonders into sillier antics than the last, involving his strange mom as well as detectives hell bent on pursuing a serial killer. It's a harsh unapologetic direction for comedy, a bit similar to Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, certainly not a light watch for casual or younger audience, but for mature demographic the oddities might be a treat.

The cast performs with intense gusto and yelling, which is also one of the movie's quirks. Its accent is very thick, when said in fast pace it can be confusing, so subtitles would be helpful for this case. It can be jarring when the movie tries to pull off a strangely dark tone, borderline uncomfortably so. Furthermore, the actors seem truly invested on delivering all around antagonizing characters, thus there's no real heroes here.

The movie could be vulgar at times, yet its crude and bloody nature might be ironically entertaining.

Dark Comedy, well-acted 7.5!

[idares · 7/10 · 28 August 2020]

This is a dark comedy that gives genuine giggles. Suspend disbelief and sit back with some popcorn. The whole cast is great. Emma Thompson's role as the jaded mother of Barney is surprising, but her performance is outstanding.

A Glaswegian set black comedy with a wonderfully vulgar Emma Thompson

[vampire_hounddog · 6/10 · 13 October 2020]

A seemingly angry Glaswegian barber (Robert Carlyle) doesn't seem to like his customers, but as he is about to be sacked he accidentally kills his boss (Stephen McCole) in the barber shop, and later another colleague. He tries to dispose of both bodies without reporting either incident. Meanwhile, a serial killer is also on the loose and at work and when he asks for help from his rough and brassy mother (Emma Thompson) he discovers that she is the serial killer.

Carlyle's directorial debut packs some surprising punches in this quirky, very Glaswegian black comedy. He adds a good deal of local flavour to the film, including in and around Barrowlands, the famous Glasgow venue. Thompson is superb and is funny as Carlyle's battle axe vulgar foul mouthed mother. Ray Winstone provides support as the harnagued London invesigator with a decent cameo by Tom Courtenay as the inept police chief.

Ultimately disappointing

[Denno1972 · 5/10 · 12 January 2021]

There are some good touches here and the acting is good, particularly Emma Thompson. The main issue here is the film doesn't know what it wants to be. It's not funny enough for a comedy, not dark enough for a thriller and not complex enough for a dark drama. Overall it's watchable but ultimately disappointing

Hugely enjoyable, uniquely Glasgow

[kenny-154-609018 · 8/10 · 2 August 2015]

Greatly enjoyed this film. The weakest element is probably the story which is on the improbable end of the spectrum but, as long as you forgive the absurdity of the plot and just go with the flow, it's a thoroughly enjoyable 90 minutes. They could also possibly have done with a little more explanation of the back-story rather than jumping straight in - some might find it all a little complicated especially in the first half hour. The comedy is uniquely Glasgow and the language typically (and authentically!) blue. Visually it's all nicely shot with some of the more off-beat Glasgow landmarks featuring prominently. The acting is great with, as others have noted, standout performances by both Emma Thomson & Ray Winstone. I can't help thinking that Robert Carlyle as Director got better performances out of his other leads than he did out of Robert Carlyle (Actor) - perhaps the double responsibility of first time director and lead actor was a little too much to pull off. Not that his performance was bad, just a little lacking in finesse in places.

Minor criticisms apart, this is a very enjoyable movie and well worth watching.

A dark Scottish comedy that dives a wee bit too dark...

[targe1314 · 7/10 · 24 May 2017]

Being Scottish, and being from Glasgow, I had to see this movie.

It has the feel of a 'modern sweeney todd', in this case a bumbling and hapless accidental sweeney todd, who somehow spontaneously kills people, often just by touching them. The strange accidents that result in the deaths of his co-workers are definitely some of the least believable murders I have ever seen.

All of this accomplished by Hollywood's 'New Favorite Scottish Actor', - Robert Carlyle, Bobby, who appears to be the go-to guy for a Scottish character lately (Ewan Mcgregor sighs and thanks him)

Saving the day is Emma Thompson, as usual. I would rate this role by Emma as Oscar worthy and one of her best. She absolutely NAILS the old Glasgow biddy as Bobby's ma, with a wee bit o spark left in-er, and the laughs are frequent every time she is on screen and pulling off a flawless guttural lower-class Glaswegian accent.

The movie begins as a dark comedy, with bumbling inspectors in not so hot pursuit of a serial killer in Glasgow that is chopping up it's victims and mailing them to loved ones. As our hapless and clutsy barber, who just seems to get people killed by accident but is not the serial killer, slowly clues in to the horror that the real killer may be his own mother, the truth about how little his mother loves him and his dubious parentage take the movie down a real depressingly dark side road we really didn't need. At this point we just want to vomit along with Bobby, and the ending has little uplift to our depressed hearts.

This movie could have been so much more, the Scottish version of 'Hot Fuzz' for example. But instead of going for the laughs, like a true Glasgow bully, it smashed the beer bottle and came at us to give us a 'Glasgow Grin'. Gutted after watching this. Gutted.

A black comedy with gallus Glaswegian attitude.

[guchrisc · 29 July 2015]

'The Legend Of Barney Thomson' is the feature film debut of Robert Carlyle as Director. Bobby was born in Maryhill Glasgow and thus was able to give an authentic touch to this Glaswegian crime-comedy. He has also gathered a great cast of fellow actors, many of whom he has worked with previously.

Ever since he exploded onto the screen, in the TV series 'Cracker', Bobby has been an acting legend! Thus it is appropriate, that as well as directing 'TLOBT', he also plays the eponymous legend. However, as the film opens, the 'legend' is really a most unimpressive figure. In fact, he is rather pathetic! He is an ageing single man, with no friends, and no patter. Thus, life is passing him by as he plys his trade as a barber. Even in the work, he is unpopular, thus the wimpish Barney faces an uncertain future. His destiny victim to any twist of fate that may befall him.

This film is essentially a comic version of a cop show. Glasgow was the setting for many years of a TV cop show called 'Taggart'. Bobby's first acting credit was on that show. So it is entertaining then, that the format of Glaswegian cops hunting down murderers, is here played for laughs.

Real-life hard-man Ray Winstone, (well real-life hard-boy, he did box with the famous Repton Boxing Club), has acted with Bobby Carlyle before in the cops-and-robbers crime film 'Face' (1997). Ray has gone on to play some memorable villains such as in 'Ripley's Game' (2002) and 'The Departed' (2006). In 2012 he played the famous Detective Inspector Jack Regan in 'The Sweeney'. Here in 'TLOBT' he essentially plays the same character, though this time for laughs. A cockney marooned in Glasgow, he methodically conducts his sterling Regan- like police-work, all the while offering pleasantries and home-spun philosophy.

Emma Thompson got her first big break in the 1987 TV series 'Tutti Frutti', where she played along side star Robbie Coltrane (who also starred in the 'Cracker' TV series), and Maurice Roeves and Richard Wilson. 'TF' was a comedy set and filmed in Glasgow. Here, in 'TLOBT', Miss Thompson once again returns to Glasgow for a comic role. She plays Barney Thomson's mother and does so authentically. Never before, has she looked more horrible, or acted so well or so convincingly. It would be wrong to say that many of the women in Glasgow are like Barney's mum. However, many Glaswegians will find her character authentically familiar. She looks and sounds the part!

Casting for 'TLOBT' is universally good. There is authenticity here with accents that was sadly lacking in the recent serious Glasgow gangster film 'The Wee Man'. However, the two stars of that film; Martin Compston (a rising star), and Stephen McCole, both gave outstandingly tremendous performances. Here, in 'TLOBT', they both have small roles as two of Barney's fellow barbers. Incidentally, Mr Carlyle and Mr McCole, were both in 'Stone of Destiny' (2008). The great veteran actor James Cosmo also has a small part as another barber.

Other parts are also acted well, however Brian Pettifer, perfectly playing a wee wideo, and Matt Costello in the smallest of parts, were both outstanding, both in gritty realism, and for entertainment value.

This film is a crime-comedy and as such is very entertaining. The Q&A sessions between Bobby's Barney and Ray's cop were extremely funny. Bobby also did some funny physical comedy too. Because this is a crime-comedy it is of course cliché-ridden. In a straight crime drama, there are of course clichés of the genre, too many clichés though may spoil the drama. However, in comedy, the clichés can be used for entertainment and laughs and thus we can never get enough of them. In this film, there are one or two very clichéd scenes. Seeing them coming, means that they can be savoured to their full extent as they play out. However do be warned, although this is a comedy, it is a black comedy about murder. Some of the violence is both bloody and realistic. Hence why the UK certificate is 15.

Robert Carlyle as Director has a good eye for detail. Film appears to be set in about the seventies. Period detail seems good. There are lots of beiges. To give an authenticity to the filming, it seems to have been done with a brown tinge, rather like the recent 'Mr Holmes'. Thus like that film, I found the lighting a spot dark for my liking at times. Filming is good, with a good eye for detail. I particularly liked the scene where Barney is seen moving away as the lights go on. Fine attention to detail there! In playing the wimp- like Barney, Robert Carlyle gets some close-ups of his face. This may be a comedy, but we also see some tortured looks of Barney in a more serious mode, reminiscent of the iconic close-up shots of Bob Hoskins in the 1980 'The Long Good Friday' gangster film.

There were iconic scenes of Glasgow in the location shooting. The metal lifts, all so familiar! The Red Road Flats, The Barrowland Ballroom, Bridgeton Cross! Much of the filming seems to have taken place in the area around Glasgow Cross and the Gallowgate. This is of course highly appropriate as this film is a celebration of the gallus Glaswegian character.

Pure gallus! Pure dead brilliant! 9/10.

Great performances with a sketchy storyline! 5/10

[leonblackwood · 5/10 · 22 November 2015]

Review: This movie definitely has a unique but weird storyline with some brilliant performances from the cast, especially Emma Thompson and Ray Winstone. It's hard to explain the plot without spoiling it for the people who haven't watched it but I will give it a go! The story takes place in Glasgow and it's about a barber called Barney (Robert Carlyle), who has very little people skills and finds it hard to chat to the customers who come to the shop for there haircut. After a while, the shop owner decides to employ a fresh new barber who is willing to interact with the customers, so he eventually sacks Barney who takes the news quite badly because he hasn't got any other forms of pleasure in his life. Whilst pleading to stay employed with the shop owner, a random accident happens which changes Barney's life forever. He runs to his mum, Cemolina (Emma Thompson), for help, only to find that she also has many skeletons in her closet as well. Whilst under investigation from the hot headed cop Holdall (Ray Winstone), he tries to cover his tracks from the fatal accident that happened with his boss but his work colleague works out what Barney has been up to, so they also have an heated argument which leads to another fatal accident. Anyway, to cut a long story short, Barney disposes the bodies with the cops hot on his tale but they soon work out who is the true culprit of the murders in the area, which leads to a showdown that really isn't what was expected! If you take this movie seriously, you really won't enjoy it because the far fetched storyline really does go a bit over the top in places. Although Barney had a motif for the first murder, he should have just gone to the police because it was an honest mistake, which they would have worked out with forensics. With that aside, Ray Winstone just plays his usual cockney self but he does show some true emotion in parts of the film. Emma Thompson's transformation was excellent and her accent was spot on, along with her mannerisms and "hard woman/mother" demeanor which is far from the everyday Emma Thompson that we have seen in real life. The storyline was a bit sketchy in places but this extremely dark comedy was well put together well by Robert Carlyle. The showdown at the end was a bit ridiculous and I personally thought that it spoilt the movie but it's still worth a watch, just for its originality and great performances. You might need to watch it with subtitles because Carlyle and Thompson's accents are really strong. Watchable!

Round-Up: Since his big break in Trainspotting and the highly acclaimed Full Monty, Robert Carlyle, 54, has been in and out of the spotlight with movies like Angela's Ashes, The World Is Not Enough, Plunkett & Maclean, There's Only One Jimmy Grimble, the Beach, the 51st State with Samuel L. Jackson, Eragon and 28 Weeks Later. You can tell that he's not really into the whole Hollywood glamour scene, so he seems to keep himself low key, even when he's starring in a Bond movie or big movies like the Beach with DiCaprio. This is the first major release with Carlyle in the directors chair, so I have to rate him for getting the most out of a top cast. The stupidity of Barney actions is questionable throughout the film but it's still a decent watch.

I recommend this movie to people who are into their crime/comedies starring Robert Carlyle, Emma Thompson, Ray Winstone and Tom Courtenay. 5/10

The darkest comedy gets, and I love it

[NateWatchesCoolMovies · 8/10 · 15 February 2016]

Robert Carlyle's directional debut The Legend Of Barney Thomsen is as pitch friggin black as dark comedies get, and is a side splitting royal circus of cheekily depressing, gloriously gory antics that would make the inhabitants of Fargo run for cover. It also has the distinct flavour of Scotland on its side, every character articulating with a soup thick, snark oozing brogue that throws a devilishly funny haze over the already hilarious comic material. Carlyle plays pathetic barber Barney Thomsen, a volatile, feeble little man who's been relegated to the worst chair in the barbershop, and told what an aggravating, listless nonce he is by his colleagues ("you look like a haunted tree" his supervisor intones in dead seriousness). When they threaten to fire him, he accidentally murders his supervisor with a pair of scissors, and kicks offa blood soaked odyssey of such head banging idiocracy that one can only view this as an ultraviolent looney toons cartoon of murder and madness. Barney finds himself in way over his head and tries to excavate himself out of the dodgy situation he got himself into. There's also a serial killer on the loose in Glasgow that likes to mail body parts to the police, including a dick and a full severed human buttocks, in giddily explicit detail. He's pursued by a maniacal police detective played by Ray Winstone, who plays the role like a Christmas ham hooked up to jumper cable powered by methamphetamine. For an actor to out-crazy Robert Carlyle takes a lot of effort, but Winstone is game, pulling the cork of sanity right out for a howlingly funny piece of work. And then there's Emma Thompson. Holeee crap. I've never seen her cut loose like she does here, playing Barney's cantankerous, potty mouthed, shrivelled old walnut of a mother. She's caked in paper mâché looking makeup and gurgles forth the funniest Scottish accenting the film. You'd have to check the credits to know its Thompson having a bit of fun from her usual serious fare as this skanky, deplorable old baboon and loving every minute of it. Thrown in James Cosmo and a priceless Tom Courtney as a cynical Superintendent, and you've got a cast that's game to give their all for director Carlyle, whose already established competence in off kilter comedic acting clearly extends wonderfully behind the camera as well. A blistering powder keg to kick off 2016, and a full on blood soaked barrel of laughs.

Carlyle's directing debut

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 9 December 2018]

Glasgow police Detective Inspector Holdall (Ray Winstone) leads the failing investigation into a serial killer who dismembers his victims. He gets demoted and has to report to rival Detective Inspector June Robertson (Ashley Jensen). Barney Thomson (Robert Carlyle) is a bitter mediocre barber and nobody likes his angry demeaner. His boss Wullie Henderson fires him and he accidentally kills Wullie. He brings the body home and his mom Cemolina (Emma Thompson) chops it up for unknown reasons.

Robert Carlyle tries his hand at directing. The material has some dark humor. The cast is stacked. It works to some extend. Carlyle needs a more daring visual eye to fully satisfy the material's dark surreal potential. It's a solid debut but he doesn't have an unique enough style. He remains a great actor but his directing career is still in doubt. At least, Emma Thompson seems to be having loads of fun. The movie sings whenever she's with Carlyle.

Oh Dear!

[keithdonald · 3/10 · 19 February 2016]

Firstly, I have immense high regard for the four principal actors in this film; namely, Robert Carlyle, Ray Winstone, Tom Courtennay and Emma Thompson. Their resumes' over the years have been the envy of any aspiring actor/actress. That said, why on earth did they subscribe to this dire movie?

Granted Tom Courtenay played the irascible Chief Superintendent well but I'm getting a little tired that the boss is always depicted this way. The world over film makers do the same thing, wouldn't it be refreshing if the boss was portrayed as a kind, supportive human being for once? Emma Thompson did well taking off the Glaswegian accent, Ray Winstone did well playing Ray Winstone and Robert Carlyle was just OK playing the guy where life just isn't being nice to him.

For me the film lacked direction and fell between two stools, it wasn't particularly funny so at best was a very poor comedy and it certainly wasn't dark humour, so it basically fell short on all counts.

Do not be seduced by the cast like I had been. Avoid.

Different

[billcr12 · 7/10 · 13 March 2016]

Robert Carlyle is Barney Thomson, a 50 something loner and mama's boy who works as a barber in Glasgow. His mother is played by Emma Thompson, who is magnificent as a hard drinking, chain smoking compulsive gambler. Barney drafts his mom to help him after he accidentally kills his boss and requires her assistance in hiding the body. What follows is an hilarious series of bizarre events, including the pursuit by a foul mouthed detective, Hold all(Ray Winestone). My only criticism is that as an American, I had trouble at times with the heavy Scottish accents. I would recommend subtitles for any viewers not from Scotland. The look of the film is a cross breeding of Quentin Tarrantino and the Coen brothers, most especially Fargo. A solid 7.5/10.

Would be funnier if i could understand the dialogue

[malcolmgsw · 6/10 · 24 November 2020]

I don't know why it is but when actors go north of the border they seem to become virtually incoherent.Though maybe it was for that reason they cast Ray Winstone.I found this black comedy to be quite funny.

Not interesting enough.

[sergepesic · 6/10 · 30 October 2022]

Sometimes I wish that I like the movie I watch better. I was wholeheartedly rooting for Robert Carlyle's debut. "Barney Thomson" is a dark comedy wannabe, trying to walk on a tightrope between two skyscrapers, without a safety net. Well, the good news is there was no tragic accident and the bad news that somehow arriving to the other side isn't really much of a success. Dark, macabre comedy is a hard genre to get right. The movie had magnificent cast, somewhat interesting story, but apart from every scene stealing Emma Thompson it all falls very short. Not funny enough, not gory enough and sadly, just not interesting enough. And that is the most painful insult one can give to a filmmaker. Sorry.

Should Have Been Better

[jimdoyle111 · 2/10 · 14 August 2021]

The book on which this is based is quite funny, which considering its theme of a psycho killer dismembering corpses, is a neat trick. The film catches some of the humour (including uniquely Glasgow humour) and there are a couple of laugh out loud moments, but it's ruined by having some old actors in there who really shouldn't be, and an out-of-control performance by Ashley Jensen. The general grime and low-lifeness is caught well enough - the dog track, the bingo hall, the chain smoking nagging mother - but the police characters (with the exception of Ray Winstone who gets it right) are caricatures who swear just for the sake of swearing. A missed opportunity.

Weird, crazy, insane, loved...

[RosanaBotafogo · 9/10 · 14 September 2021]

The kind of bizarre and exaggerated movie I love, adorable black humor, improbable situations, absurd actions, I was laughing to myself, and the plot twist, my dad, what a delight, I rejoiced, what a cute mommy... What was that ending, wow, weird, crazy, insane, loved...

Worth a Watch

[ragnar-46222 · 6/10 · 25 January 2016]

Looking for a film which isn't sat on a picket fence, or a CGI squeezed bag of eye hurt, then this could amuse you for the 90 minutes. Don't forget to plug the Scottish babel fish in before the film starts. Emma Thompson plays a perfect cemolina...Ray Winstone...plays Ray Winstone. There were some stereotypical 70's remarks linked with the typical regional British profiles....But Was he in The Bill or what?.. Anyway, nice start to Begsbies directors career. And the dark side of comedy was a challenge. Interesting, quirky, with a few guffaws, the speed is in tempo with the story, which sort of becomes 'gifted on a plate'. It's far from the trainspotting of old, and a fresh view on a little corner of madness. Worth a watch even if it is only for Emma Thompson showing why she is a great of the screen.

Dialogue

[jkelly-82841 · 4/10 · 29 May 2022]

Can writers actually write without using words beginning with F and ending with K or is it obligatory. Can't they trust the storyline ? Is there anybody still shocked other than 13 year olds.

Beautifully shot funny film set in Glasgow

[moirabroon · 9/10 · 18 August 2015]

I watched this in a cinema and there was a lot of laughter coming from the audience. One man even laughed at the first line. The laughing continued throughout.

I would have given the film 10 stars but the story is a bit ridiculous. But, since it is comedy, and IS funny this didn't seem to matter too much. The ending was amusing too.

The film is beautifully shot and the acting is 1st class. My favourite line delivered brilliantly by Emma is "I label everything." And I agree with another reviewer that in the future, this may be considered a cult classic.

Think before getting a haircut again

[cesspit-53505 · 7/10 · 8 March 2016]

This is not a film for everyone, specially the swearing. I found it hilarious at times, serious at others, yet when all is said and done there was an undertone of reality that seemed too surreal in its absurdity. The Scottishness will be be missed by some as Americanness is missed in other films. It was nevertheless very entertaining and reasonably clever in a naive and old fashioned way. I will never forget certain moments in this film and this is why i give it a fairly high rating. My favourite moment has to be at the bingo hall when in the entrance. I found the ending a bit boring but generally there were more than enough good moments to make up for that.

Don't bother - trying to be funny and failing.

[Janet1612 · 2/10 · 21 January 2023]

I was looking forward to this, and from the start it wasn't looking good. It just got sillier and sillier. Yes we get the point, Barney doesn't like customers, about to be sacked - not sure how good a barber he is. Language is another issue - every other word is a swear word.

How they managed to get big names like Thompson (who saves the film), Winston and the wonderful Tom Courtney, is anyone's bet. Winston should do more comedy, he was great in this, despite the dire script.

Great film for teenagers.

The background music makes it so difficult to hear the dialogue - why do film makers insist on drowning out the speech in films! Daft.

It's my bingo night......

[FlashCallahan · 6/10 · 19 April 2016]

The Legend Of Barney Thomson has quite the eclectic cast, and whilst watching it, it gives the false security that you are actually enjoying the grotesque, Sweeney Todd like feel the film has to it.

And then you finish watching it and begin to spot the flaws which the film has.

From a directorial point of view, Carlyle does quite a good job directing this left-field piece. Normally, actors with whom have played gritty characters in the past, usually go for a more depressing hard hitting film for their debut, like Nil By Mouth, Tyrannosaur, or The War Zone, not a bizarre crime comedy with some very colourful characters.

if you are a fan of Carlyle, he's as good as he ever is, fleshing out the titular character and giving him all manner of ticks and traits that hinder his quest to keep things under wraps.

and this could be the fundamental flaw as to why the rest of the film doesn't really work, he was probably too focused on his own motivation than to pep up the other members of the cast.

Winstone does his best grumpy copper role, and for the first few minutes of the film, it's quite amusing, until you realise that he does nothing more than utter xenophobic sentences, and is generally abhorrent toward everyone in the film.

Emma Thompson fares a little better, her and Carlyle are wonderful when they are together, but really she is nothing more than your comedy boozy sweary mother, it's like Emma Thompson being in that poisonous drivel Mr's Browns Boys.

The film does have some good ideas, and for the most part, it's a pretty decent film, with some original elements, and some very strange characters.

it's just the fact that some of the main characters are just too clichéd for their own good, and ruin any sense of realism the film was getting from it's gritty setting.

Worth seeing for Carlyle, and Winstone if you want to see him do another pointless shouty copper role.