`Snatch' will attract male audiences
By JEFFREY Q. IRISH
Scene Movie Critic
"Snatch" is young, chic and energetic. It looks like it belongs on MTV with its gangsters, quick cuts, fast zooms and killer soundtrack.
The title is a bit misleading in that only four women share minimal screen time during the entire film. The original (and more appropriate) title was "Diamonds," but a Kirk Douglas film was released in 1999 under the same name. The brains in marketing came up with "Snatch" to target the young male audience this movie was made for.
The film is Guy Ritchie's sophomore effort after his debut independent film "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels" became a cult hit in 1999. "Snatch" seems like a more expensive sequel to "Lock," so much so that a few critics have called it "A Few More Barrels."
The claims are valid; Ritchie employs much of the same cast in a similar story line involving guns, robbery and evil characters with long names like "Bullet Tooth Tony."
The only noticeable difference is the addition of Brad Pitt as a wiry pikey (British trailer-trash) named "One Punch Mickey." The character is a cross between Tyler Durden and a leprechaun, and Pitt brings a great deal of comedy with a daffy "orish" accent. It is interesting to see how Pitt's increasing ugliness has made him more appealing to male audiences.
The plot begins when bare-knuckle boxing promoters Turkish (Jason Statham) and Tommy (Stephen Graham) get into debt with Brick Top (Alan Ford). Brick Top is a local crime don and occasional pig farmer. If anyone cannot repay a debt owed to him, they are fed to his pigs.
Meanwhile, the Hassidic gambler Franky Four Fingers ("Traffic" star Benicio Del Toro) steals an 84-carat diamond and is en route to meet his Jewish Mafia boss Cousin Avi in New York when he finds a casino in London. But Cousin Avi (Dennis Farina) doesn't want to lose his diamond to a casino, so he flies to London before all hell breaks loose.
As everyone well knows, Ritchie is the new husband of pop icon Madonna. And like Madonna, Ritchie is dedicated to his art.
"Snatch" is a very courageous exercise in film style. The entire movie feels like a music video. For 2 1/2 hours the camera never stops moving and cutting. The plot changes so much that if you blink for a second you might be lost for 30 minutes.
The amount of planning that must've gone into so many shots at different angles is mind-boggling. The scenes of Cousin Avi flying across the Atlantic are cool and happen so quickly that, in a matter of two seconds, we see him buy a plane ticket, board a plane, sit down, do a shot and declare at customs, "don't go to England."
The bare-knuckle boxing matches are somewhat reminiscent of "Fight Club," but the adrenaline brought out to sounds of Oasis' "F----'n in the Bushes" as Mickey enters the ring surpasses even David Fincher's censored masterpiece. It makes everyone — even pacifists — want to jump into the ring.
"Snatch" is probably more of what Ritchie originally wanted for "Lock." It surpasses "Lock" in that it is quicker and louder, but the similarities of the two films are what keep this film from perfection. It's time that Ritchie discover a lesson that his elder bride learned long ago: you must reinvent yourself to stay on top.
-Four and a half shamrocks (out of 5)
All Scene Stories for Thursday, February 1, 2001
