Complicity (2000)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Gavin Millar

Writers:

Iain Banks (novel)
Bryan Elsley (writer)

Genre:

Thriller | Drama

Plot:

Cameron Colley is a young scottish journalist, with an interest in exposing the wrongs committed by the rich and powerful...

Plot Keywords:

Death | Drug Abuse | Murder | Sadomasochism | Weak Heart

Cast

Jonny Lee Miller	...	Cameron Colley
Brian Cox	...	Inspector McDunn
Keeley Hawes	...	Yvonne
Paul Higgins	...	Andy
Jason Hetherington	...	William
Bill Paterson	...	Wallace Byatt
Samuel West	...	Neil
Laura Ellis	...	McCormack's mistress
Alan Sinclair	...	Sir Toby McCormack
Alex Norton	...	Kenny Garnet
Valerie Edmond	...	Josephine Boyle
Paul Young	...	Frank
Katy Hale	...	Librarian
Alex Purves	...	Persimmon
Rachael Stirling	...	Claire

Also Known As:

Retribution (video title)

MPAA:

Rated R for graphic violence, strong sexuality, language and drug use.

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Argentina:16 | UK:18 | USA:R | Finland:K-16

Filming Locations:

Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

Company:

Carlton Films

Soundtrack:

Stay Focused

very enjoyable, but too fast paced

sometimes, a film can suffer greatly from just one drawback, even if everything else is top notch. unfortunately, this is the case here.

this film, based on iain banks' novel, is an impressive production, with excellent actors, breathtaking scottish settings, believable and very enjoyable character quirks, truly shocking murders, suspense and even some steamy sex.

however, "complicity" doesn't quite succeed, and i can only trace it back to one thing: it's much too compressed. i haven't read the original novel, but it's obvious a great deal of it made it to the screen; unfortunately, the film's 93 minute running time just doesn't suffice for this epic tale: cameron colley's journalistic investigation into several seemingly unrelated murders, egged on by a mysterious anonymous source, which causes him to clash with his disapproving bosses; his relationships with his old friends, and the many secrets they share; his affair with yvonne; the various grisly murders as seen by the killer; flashbacks to cameron's childhood and teenage years; and the psychologically jarring moments after cameron becomes the police's prime suspect.

of course, this film offers many funny, thrilling, surprising and shocking moments, but they're all a bit rushed. a longer format would have benefitted this film greatly. banks' exceedingly clever and profound story manages to come over very well, but the film is so densely packed that i'd recommend you take small breaks so as to take everything in; make a cup of coffee or something and come back, as you would to a good novel (of course you could go straight to the source, but me, i'd rather watch the movie.)

the fabulous bbc production of banks' "the crow road" shows the extent to which a longer format is more suitable to his multifaceted stories.