Big Picture Big Sound

Legend Review

By Tom Fugalli

Legends In Their Own Crimes

Written and directed by Brian Helgeland, "Legend" tells the story of infamous London gangster twins Reggie and Ronnie Kray.

Reggie (Tom Hardy) and Ronnie (also Tom Hardy) are initially presented as a Jekyll and Hyde, but who is Jekyll and who is Hyde becomes increasingly unclear. Both are psychopaths in their fashion. Reggie can pass as a businessman, whereas Ronnie has recently been released from an actual mental institution (and only because one of Reggie's goons made the psychiatrist an offer he couldn't refuse).

The Krays shake down and shoot down their rivals in expectedly brutal ways, but their relationship with each other adds a layer of sentimentality. Reggie's eventual and unenviable wife Frances Shea (Emily Browning) is also the movie's narrator. She arguably represents the audience's changing attitude, as the romance of crime takes its tragic turns.

legend.jpg

Hardy is more than up to the task of portraying the Kray twins, masterfully balancing the shifting ratios of charm and terror in both brothers. Though at times it's hard not to hear the voice of Bane ("The Dark Knight Rises") in Ronnie's mumbled cockney. Thankfully the only thing on Hardy's face this time is a thick-rimmed pair of glasses.

"Legend" looks better than it sounds, as the soundtrack of frequent 60s-era hit singles is distractingly overused and can make the movie feel at times like a musical. More effective is the nightclub crooning of Timi Yuro (Duffy).

Unavoidably under the influence of Scorsese, "Legend" avoids becoming just an English "Goodfellas." Still, for fans of the gangster genre, the Krays will feel like family.

What did you think?

Movie title Legend
Release year 2015
MPAA Rating R
Our rating
Summary Tom Hardy masterfully portrays infamous London gangster twins Reggie and Ronnie Kray.
View all articles by Tom Fugalli
More in Movies
Big News
Newsletter Sign-up
 
Connect with Us