Essex Boys (2000)

The film is based loosely around events in December 1995 that culminated in the murders of three drug dealers in Rettendon, Essex, UK. On 6th December Patrick Tate, Craig Rolfe and Tony ... See full summary »

Director:

Terry Winsor

Writers:

Jeff Pope, Terry Winsor

Stars:

Charlie Creed-Miles, Sean Bean, Gareth Milne

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Charlie Creed-Miles	...	Billy Reynolds
Sean Bean	...	Jason Locke
Gareth Milne	...	Chippy
Alex Kingston	...	Lisa Locke
Amelia Lowdell	...	Nicole
Larry Lamb	...	Peter Chase
Michael McKell	...	Wayne Lovell
Holly Davidson	...	Suzy Welch
Terence Rigby	...	Henry Hobbs
Tom Wilkinson	...	John Dyke
Billy Murray	...	Perry Elley
George Jackos	...	Kiri Christos
Sally Hurst	...	Beverley
Louise Landon	...	Jemma
Gary Love	...	Detective

Storyline

The film is based loosely around events in December 1995 that culminated in the murders of three drug dealers in Rettendon, Essex, UK. On 6th December Patrick Tate, Craig Rolfe and Tony Tucker, three drug dealers well known to the police, were lured to Workhouse Lane, Rettendon. There they were blasted to death with a shot gun while sitting in their Range Rover. They had been lured to their deaths on the pretext of a lucrative drugs deal. The three bodies were found the following morning, 7 December 1995.

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Plot Keywords:

drug dealer | murder | essex | police | range rover | 

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Taglines:

Some lines should never be crossed.

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Genres:

Crime | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

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

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 July 2000 (UK)

Also Known As:

Gangsters - The Essex Boys

Filming Locations:

Essex, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£111,548 (UK) (14 July 2000)

Gross:

£441,128 (UK) (4 August 2000)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Granada Film Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Did You Know?

Quotes

[Jason has just beaten up a suspected grass, kidnapped him and thrown acid in his face, getting some on his own shirt. He and Billy have driven him to a muddy river bank and left him there, screaming in agony]
Billy Reynolds: [voiceover] And that was that. Job done. Jason needed a new shirt - and the geezer needed a new face!

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Crazy Credits

Statement in opening titles: "This story is inspired by a single true event. It left three men dead, two serving life imprisonment and another living under an assumed identity. The rest is fiction, as are all the characters."

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Soundtracks

"Butterfly"
Performed by Sylvia Powell

User Reviews

A good film on several levels.

A good film on several levels. The unflattering comparisons that some critics have made between it and The Usual Suspects are completely misguided as directorial intent and effect in the two pictures are dissimilar. Winsor's film, it seems to me, brilliantly evokes both the drabness and cruelty of the criminal mindset. It does this partly through the choice of dull, flat Essex landscapes with their coastal marshes, grey motorway links, flash nouveau riche mansions and the tawdry glamour of seafront locations. The characters are both repellent and yet curiously mesmerising. This is not a film in which it is easy to lose interest. Nobody can do psycho-thug better than Sean Bean, and Charlie Creed-Miles has created a dangerously weak character as Billy, whom it is almost possible to feel sorry for without actually liking. The film is very well lit, though I did find sound levels a little dodgy at times It's a film that, despite critics' comments, is not a million miles from Get Carter in quality.