Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998)

A botched card game in London triggers four friends, thugs, weed-growers, hard gangsters, loan sharks and debt collectors to collide with each other in a series of unexpected events, all for the sake of weed, cash and two antique shotguns.

Director:

Guy Ritchie

Writer:

Guy Ritchie

Stars:

Jason Flemyng, Dexter Fletcher, Nick Moran

Top Rated Movies #137 | Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 13 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jason Flemyng	...	Tom
Dexter Fletcher	...	Soap
Nick Moran	...	Eddy
Jason Statham	...	Bacon
Steven Mackintosh	...	Winston
Nicholas Rowe	...	J
Nick Marcq	...	Charles
Charles Forbes	...	Willie (as Charlie Forbes)
Vinnie Jones	...	Big Chris
Lenny McLean	...	Barry The Baptist
Peter McNicholl	...	Little Chris
P.H. Moriarty	...	Hatchet Harry
Frank Harper	...	Dog
Steve Sweeney	...	Plank
Huggy Leaver	...	Paul

Storyline

Four Jack-the-lads find themselves heavily - seriously heavily - in debt to an East End hard man and his enforcers after a crooked card game. Overhearing their neighbours in the next flat plotting to hold up a group of out-of-their-depth drug growers, our heros decide to stitch up the robbers in turn. In a way the confusion really starts when a pair of antique double-barrelled shotguns go missing in a completely different scam.

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Plot Keywords:

cockney accent | shotgun | hatchet | antique | money | 

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Taglines:

A Disgrace to Criminals Everywhere.

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, pervasive language, sexuality and drug content

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 August 1998 (UK)

Also Known As:

Juegos, trampas y dos armas humeantes

Filming Locations:

13-15 Park Street, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£960,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£941,638 (UK) (28 August 1998)

Gross:

$3,650,677 (USA) (21 May 1999)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Summit Entertainment, Steve Tisch Company, The, SKA Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min 120 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Model Laura Bailey filmed scenes as Eddie's love interest. This major plotline was only removed after filming had been completed.

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Goofs

Just before Plank gets shot in the neck with the air rifle, we see him looking to his right with the left side of his neck exposed. But when he is shot, the close-up shows him holding the right side of his neck.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Bacon: Right. Let's sort the buyers from the spyers, the needy from the greedy, and those who trust me from the ones who don't, because if you can't see value here today, you're not up here shopping. You're up here shoplifting. You see these goods? Never seen daylight, moonlight, Israelite. Fanny by the gaslight. Take a bag, c'mon take a bag. I took a bag home last night. Cost me a lot more than ten pound, I can tell you. Anyone like jewelry? Look at that one there. Handmade in Italy, ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

In the closing credits, the character names in the cast list are shown entirely in lower-case letters with no initial capital letters.

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Connections

References Crocodile Dundee (1986)

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Soundtracks

I Wanna Be Your Dog
Performed by The Stooges
Courtesy of Warner Special Products / Warner Music UK Ltd.
Written by Iggy Pop (as James Osterberg Jr.), Scott Asheton, Ron Asheton,
David Alexander
© Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp. / Stooge Staffel Music
By kind permission of Warner / Chappell Music Ltd

User Reviews

''And there's one more thing...it's been emotional' says one of the Slickest 'Gangster' flicks ever!

'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels' is one of those films that I can watch x number of times and still enjoy it as much as I did in the first viewing. This is pretty much what an action gangster flick should be like. It has all the required ingredients. The action, humour, drama and suspense balance extremely well. Ritchie's writing and direction are excellent as not only does the film keep one at the edge of his/her seat but the characters (including minor ones) are rich. They're over-the-top but that only works for the film. While the bad guys think they're powerful and all, they're actually portrayed as dumb and the good guys think they're clever and have all the answers to their problems when they're actually not so bright. The characters are portrayed as cool yet they end up getting caught in a mess. The film too is somewhat satirical as it reflects a part of life e.g. the closeness between the four friends, the son following the father's (Big Chris's) footsteps. The humour is mostly dark with sharp, witty and funny dialogues and hilarious situations. It all seems a 'natural' part of the story. Shot in DV, the camera-work and use of music is very effective. The film has a raw and gritty look yet the execution of it makes it very stylish. Richie uses the same style in 'Snatch'. He should become an auteur and make more movies of this kind as it is clearly his fort (remember his disastrous attempt at romance with 'Swept Away'?). All the actors, whether it's Jason Flemyng, Dexter Fletcher, Nick Moran, Jason Statham or more recognized faces like Vinnie Jones and Sting, seem to naturally fit their parts. 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels' is one of the coolest 'gangster' flicks. A must watch to those who love action films that have both substance and entertainment.