Starring: Benicio del Toro, Dennis Farina, Jason Flemyng, Vinnie Jones, Brad Pitt, Rade Serbedzija, Jason Statham, Stephen Graham, Alan Ford, Robbie Gee, Lennie James
Review: Illegal boxing promoter Turkish (Jason Statham) convinces gangster Brick Top (Alan Ford) to offer bets on bare-knuckle boxer Mickey (Brad Pitt) at his bookie business. When Mickey does not throw his first fight as agreed, an infuriated Brick Top demands another match. Meanwhile, gangster Frankie Four Fingers (Benicio Del Toro) comes to place a bet for a friend with Brick Top's bookies, as multiple criminals converge on a stolen diamond that Frankie has come to London to sell.
Snatch is an elaborately crafted film with several subplots woven together beautifully. Everything from a diamond heist, a bare-knuckle boxing operation, Russian thugs, and gypsies are central to the film's plot. The film is incredibly funny, with a sense of cleverness and wit prevalent throughout. There are shootouts and schemes galore with wild twists at every turn. The film is fast-paced and there are tons of unique characters that keep you on your toes, all seemingly getting their hands stuck in the cookie jar at some point as the story evolves. Brad Pitt is hilarious as a bare-knuckle boxing gypsy with an incomprehensible accent. Pitt, who was a big fan of Ritchie's Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, approached Guy Ritchie and asked for a role in this film. When Ritchie found Pitt couldn't master a London accent, he gave him the role of Mickey. Jason Statham, Benicio del Toro, and Vinnie Jones are all comedy gold as well. My only criticism here is that this film is sometimes disjointed and difficult to follow. It's not terribly confusing, but there is a certain level of attention that needs to be paid in order to fully understand the insanity that's taking place. Despite that, this movie has a great cast, and is wildly entertaining. You also might learn a valuable life lesson: "You should never underestimate the predictability of stupidity." Words to live by from a highly recommended film!
Fun Fact: Brad Pitt's character and indecipherable speech was inspired by many critics' complaints about the accents of the characters in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998). Guy Ritchie decided to counter the criticisms by creating a character that not only couldn't be understood by the audience but that also couldn't be understood by characters in the movie.