IMHO it's not really fair comparing this to The Long Good Friday and Get Carter (two of the best films ever, in any genre), but it's not bad.
As others have noted, the casting is excellent and mostly the performances are too. I wasn't so sure about the story in places, though, as - for example - the police station shoot-out stretched credibility, along with some of the character motivations. Headey's character in particular was making some very salient points about the pointlessness and risk of Ray's life all the way through the film which, for me, undermined the conclusion of the film - for both of them.
What *was* somewhat convincing to me was the implied effect of his early activism - particularly his experiences around the miners' strike demonstrations. One could easily see his idealism being finessed into a straight hatred of and contempt for the police as a result, which perhaps becomes a key underpinning of his subsequent life of crime? There's some nice complexity here.
Worth a look.
As others have noted, the casting is excellent and mostly the performances are too. I wasn't so sure about the story in places, though, as - for example - the police station shoot-out stretched credibility, along with some of the character motivations. Headey's character in particular was making some very salient points about the pointlessness and risk of Ray's life all the way through the film which, for me, undermined the conclusion of the film - for both of them.
What *was* somewhat convincing to me was the implied effect of his early activism - particularly his experiences around the miners' strike demonstrations. One could easily see his idealism being finessed into a straight hatred of and contempt for the police as a result, which perhaps becomes a key underpinning of his subsequent life of crime? There's some nice complexity here.
Worth a look.