I have to start this review by mentioning the almighty Roger Ebert and his review of London in which he really trashed it. He ended it with a question of how can a man snort that much coke and drink that much alcohol and still be talking? If you listen to people who managed to get clean, they tell these stories where they are consuming amounts of alcohol and cocaine that would kill a room full of people. These stories are pretty consistent, meaning the same thing is happening in the USA, UK, Russia and other countries.
He basically saw this movie as two junkies rambling for some time about some nonsense theories and love, without anything to offer. Actually, this is what London is offering: a peek into the life of these people and there are a lot of them out there. Now, this is where the problems start for me. Mostly because it’s one thing to present their lives and completely another to somehow make them insightful. They are not insightful when it comes to the general vibe of the things, they are insightful just for those characters. I feel that they wanted to create this complex world that doesn’t exist. But I digress, lets get back to our usual structure.
Directed by relatively unknown Hunter Richards, London features a pretty strong cast. I mean, we have a unique opportunity to see Jason Statham with hair alongside beautiful Jessica Biel and Chris Evans. Add to this list fucking Louis CK and Isla Fisher and you got yourself a fucking movie. Shot in 2005, at the end of the second wave of movies about drugs, this a relatively fun movie that leaves the moral choices to the viewer.
Meaning there won’t be preachy sequences or anything similar. Basically documenting a series of events fueled by drug consumption, London shows things how they actually are. It accentuates the simplistic approach that becomes much more complex when you start realizing what’s happening. It’s relatively similar to Go, Spun and finally Hurlyburly, with that offbeat vibe and drug aspect.
Poor Syd is going through some things. After his girlfriend leaves him, he spirals out of control, drinking and doing drugs daily. Still in the haze, he hears that his ex is moving to Los Angeles and decides to do something about it. There’s even a going away party, but Syd’s not invited. So he decides to crash along with his dealer…
London questions everything and apart from the sappy love story running in the background, it raises some interesting questions. As we’re rushing towards the brave new world, all of the previous systems of values have completely degraded. This uncertainty about the future further emphasizes the present. In turn, further fueling the Carpe Diem philosophy that goes so well with drugs and alcohol.
The only problem is that you’re basically killing yourself slowly, both your body and personality. In the end, I have to admit that I sometimes have problems with these rich people looking for the meaning of life and love with their fat wallets. However, for some unknown reason I really liked London.
Director: Hunter Richards
Writer: Hunter Richards
Cast: Chris Evans, Jessica Biel, Jason Statham, Joy Bryant, Isla Fisher, Dane Cook, Lina Esco, Juliette Marquis
Fun Stuff: Dane Cook, the actor that plays George, actually uses some of the lines from his stand up.
Rating:
IMDb Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0449061/
