The Brits are known for producing a large variety of different movies and different genres. The gangster movie, generally, is not one of them - at least from the 1950s through to the 1970s. There are standout exceptions, of course: Robbery (1967); The Italian Job (1969) - a spoof actually; the incomparable Get Carter (1971), and a few others. But not until this offering, TLGF, did the tone of English gangster movie move up a notch - or a few, in fact.There are a number of reasons why I say this, the first being the charismatic presence of Bob Hoskins - who'd appeared mostly in TV up till 1980 - as Harold Shand, a gangster who fronts as a kingpin business mogul in the London docklands; and who also controls most of the many criminal elements in and around London. Hoskins is on camera in most scenes and for most of the time. And he makes sure everybody knows it: moving from unctuous affability to mercurial madness in a nanosecond, Hoskins brings the character of Shand to a level of simmering violence not seen, I suggest, since James Cagney blazed his way through gangster movies of the thirties, forties and fifties.London, in the nineteen-eighties, was on the cusp of a boom - no pun intended - and dear Harold wanted all of it, if he could swing it. But this time with the money and prestige of enticing the American mafia into his enterprises, and offering his American friends - a bland, humorless duo - a gateway into Europe. You see, Harold figured he was just doing his bit for The Common Market anyway while he lined his own pockets and those of his friends.... But, when his sparkling Rolls-Royce goes BOOM! to bits early on Good Friday afternoon and, in the early evening, his favorite restaurant also follows suit with an even bigger BOOM!, bloody Harold figured there was something rotten in London that he had to fix. Trouble was - he'd didn't have a clue who had it in for him. Which sets him off, with his gang of bully boys, to wreak bloody havoc and mayhem upon the usual suspects; or so Harold thinks. And that's the second reason why this movie is up a notch: with Harold trying to out-mafia his Mafia friends with his brand of gruesome methods.Unhappily for Harold, he makes a hash of it all, and is still in the dark. Until he gets a lucky break and finds out the IRA is the culprit. So who needs that sort of 'lucky break'? Certainly not London, and definitely not Harold. And that's the third reason why this production moves up another notch: gangsters never mess with the IRA.Except Harold, he thinks. As a business man, he figures he can negotiate his way out of this quandary, even as his Mafia contacts pull up stakes and s*d off back to USA - "Good riddance," says our Harold, "don't need you, any way" - leaving him to deal with Irish, a task with which even the British government was experiencing much difficulty at that very time.And so ... I'll leave you to see how that deal turns out....Assisting Harold is, first, his partner-in-crime and blonde moll, Victoria (Mirren), followed by a collection of unsavory Londoner toughs, headed by one with the sinister name of Razors (P.H. Moriarty), Harold's nasty enforcer. For good measure, throw in a corrupt member, Parky (King), of the local constabulary who keeps Harold informed, if you catch my drift. In truth, the entire cast is simply perfect for the job. Nor did I see much to fault with the photography, editing and special effects.Finally, watch particularly for a young Pierce Brosnan as he coolly dispatches Harold's old friend Colin (Freeman) early on; and much later, when he confronts Harold, with his icy-cold eyes, steady hand, silencer and pistol.And, for those who pay attention to music soundtrack, this production has a jazz main theme which is simply super. Not recommended for children. Award this excellent thriller eight out of ten. May 28, 2016

British gangster movies can be a little predictable. What keeps them alive is how well the lead is and how interesting the plot unfolds. This film accomplishes both excellently. This is one of the rare movies where you learn what's the major issue along with the main character and this is a good 45 minutes into it at least.The film opens with a lengthy sequence of scenes strung together by Francis Monkman's excellent score. While no one is speaking, you are following things because they are moving quickly. These events are not explained to us though. We simply see them. I won't describe them except to say, it's this sequence that the viewer learns the meaning of along with Bob Hoskins' Harold Shand who is introduced immediately following it.Shand arrives home from an undisclosed location but you can assume it wherever he was, it was a major success for him and his organization. He has plans to expand his organization but he needs further financial assistance by American gangsters who he meets on Good Friday. Without knowing anything about what's happening, people in his employ are being brutally murdered. He launches an investigation and needless to say, things are a surprise to him.What makes this film interesting is Bob Hoskins' portrayal of Harold Shand. You learn all about the type of man he is, the type of character he always had and most importantly, how he got to be as powerful as he became. You learn the value of Helen Mirren's Victoria (Shand's wife). If nothing else, she stabilizes his inner reactionary rage. I imagine Shand fell back on her channeling him more than a few times in order to get to where he is in the story.The story is somewhat dated but it's dated like the movie War Games was. The then news headlines played a heavy role in the events in the story. In War Games it was the panic of an all out nuclear war between the US and USSR many were assuming was inevitable in the early 80's. In The Long Good Friday, it was something else entirely but no less important to what the landscape of London looked like in the late 70's and early 80's A young Pierce Brosnan has a dialog free role but no less important to the story. Paul Freeman also has no spoken word role in the story but he also is vital to how the story unfolds.On the whole, this is a movie that comes off as an experiment that really works well. All of the aspects of a good crime/action movie are here but they are presented in a different way, with a different story and with explosive, at times highly disturbing results. Truly worth seeing.

Harold Shand (Bob Hoskins) is a successful London gangster aspiring to be a legitimate owner of the abandoned Docklands for a casino and other developments with American mafia money. Victoria (Helen Mirren) is his smarter better half. While he sips champagne with corrupt cops and American mobster Charlie, IRA hit-man (Pierce Brosnan) is killing his right hand man. His other guy Eric is blown up in a car bomb outside of church on Good Friday. Harold tries to uncover the cause and finds that a minor deal unknown to him connected to IRA had gone terribly wrong. The IRA holds Harold personally responsible.This is a great staring performance from Bob Hoskins. He infuses this movie with great energy. Without him, the movie does struggle a little. The plot doesn't have much tension. It also has a great young Pierce Brosnan prominently as a nameless IRA hit-man.

Harold Shand, is a study in contradictions - violent, feared but also self-conscious and insecure. As Harold is about to close a major deal, a spate of bombing attacks bring negotiations to an abrupt halt. He must find out who would dare attack criminal London 's most powerful man. Or has somebody already taken his place?It's the study of someone who is facing ruin in a short time, from being one of the most fearsome, powerful 'mob' bosses in London, to being one of the most powerless, fearful person at once.But it's also a big finger to the government at the time of the films release, and the greed here could be a reflection of the greed of politicians, and other powerful influences at the time......anybody will do anything to line their pockets......Hoskins makes a star turn here as Shand, powerful, happy, and confident when we are first introduced, but as the film and the narrative progresses, we learn it's not him who has the power or the influence, it's his wife, the one who is the foundation and the brains of the outfit.But Harold has the final say, or so he thinks, as his wife does influence him on occasion, and keeps everything smooth. And it's to the film makers and Mirrens credit for not making Mrs Shand a one dimensional moll, she is the most fleshed out character in the film.As Harold realises that he is losing the battle,the film becomes more quickly paced, as if the editing is becoming more frequent, the more Harold becomes vulnerable.It's a tent pole in British cinema, showing a grittier, seedier side to us Brits, and we love it.