23 June 2006
LUCK IS ON JOSH'S SIDE
Video and dvd reviews Slick thriller is a winner. LUCKY NUMBER SLEVIN ***** 18
By Rick Fulton

PERHAPS taking its cue from Taggart, this has more red herrings than a trawler's net.

If you're willing to be baited and given a merry dance before being wound in, Lucky Number Slevin is a stylish thriller.

And it's hugely talented cast helps to paper up some of the more irritating dead ends.

Twenty-something loser Slevin (Josh Hartnett) happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Mistaken for his friend Nick Fisher, who is up to his eyes in debt, Slevin is unwittingly propelled into the middle of a brutal turf war between rival NewYork City gangsters The Rabbi (Ben Kingsley) and The Boss (Morgan Freeman).

Caught between the warring factions, and dressed for much of the first half of the film in just a towel, Slevin seems to have no way out.

Advertisement
Falk AdSolution

He turns to pretty coroner Lindsey (Lucy Liu) to help him outwit the kingpins before he ends up six feet under in a wooden casket.

However, a cop (Stanley Tucci) and a ruthless hit man called Goodkat (Bruce Willis) also have Slevin in their sights.

Both hope to use him to get closer to The Boss and The Rabbi and perhaps bring them to justice.

This is a serpentine plot with twists and turns so violent that by the second half it starts tying itself in knots.

Lucky Number Slevin is a stylish exercise in deception and misdirection that is almost too clever for its own good.

Screenwriter Jason Smilovic takes obvious pleasure in toying with us as he unravels the tightly wound narrative, sneakily pulling the rug from under us when we least expect it.

As thrillers go, it's impressively well constructed and executed, providing you're prepared to suspend disbelief and forgive the film the occasional con.

Scots director Paul McGuigan, who traversed similar territory in Gangster No. 1, pulls out every stop to ensure his picture is a feast for the senses.

The camera spins through 360 degrees at dizzying speed, slow motion is used to stunning effect, and swift cuts increase in frequency as the film gathers momentum.

Performances are strong, especially from Kingsley. and Freeman who are in scene-chewing form.

www.dailyrecord.co.uk