Movie Review
Layer Cake is one of those movies which uniquely blend Action and Humor seamlessly, while effortlessly churning out a movie that is both unabashed entertainment as well as an intriguing piece of film-making.
The film opens with a narration from an unnamed drug-dealer (Daniel Craig), describing the cocaine-addicted criminal world of today, and the way he sees and operates in it. Even as he plans his early retirement to a quiet and uneventful life, things go awry, and a drug-deal gone wrong sets about a chain of events that pose a threat to everyone involved in the deal. The twists and turns that follow are cleverly executed, each more surprising than the one before.
The plot moves effortlessly throughout the film, and the pacing is just right. The beautiful cinematography, though not gritty and dark as would have suited the movie, stands out, and so do the performances from the entire cast (except maybe Sienna Miller), with Michael
Gambon and Daniel Craig in top form. Although the movie features a multitude of characters, almost all of them are quite memorable.
A common complaint that some viewers have with this movie is that after a while, the story becomes so confusing, that it's impossible to keep a track of who is doing what. In my opinion this might be deliberate, because this movie essentially requires multiple viewings, each one being more rewarding than the last.
Although this is a flaw that is sometimes unnerving and frustrating on the first viewing, it seems to be the only detectable one in the stylish, intelligent and ceaselessly entertaining crime-drama, Layer Cake.
