Hard Boiled Sweets Review - A Brit Gangster Movie Set in Southend-on-Sea!

By Harry Harris / February 28, 2012

rating: 3.5

There are certain cinematic genres that historically the British have always done well, and the gangster film is maybe at the top of the list. Think The Long Good Friday, Get Carter, or more recently the sumptuous Sexy Beast. Hard Boiled Sweets is David Hughes€™ addition to the canon and, though it doesn€™t last as long in the memory as those films mentioned, it more than holds its own, and is one of the stronger British gangster films of recent years. Southend-on-Sea is best known for penny arcades, cheap B&Bs and donkey rides along the beach, but here it is home to a labyrinthine criminal underworld complete with sex, drugs, and bodies dredged up at low tide. Shrewd Eddie is the boss of the town, and he€™s in a bad mood, because this weekend Jimmy The Gent, the big cheese in London, and more importantly, Eddie€™s boss, is paying him a visit. You see, Shrewd Eddie has a million pounds of dirty cash stashed in his house, and Jimmy wants his cut, as well as to see the delights of Southend, obviously. However, what Jimmy and Eddie don€™t know is that there are seven other criminals who want that money, and they€™re willing to do whatever it takes to get rich quick. There is a lot of fun to be had in this film. First and foremost, to see Southend-on-Sea and the grimier parts of south and east London shot as if they were the most glamorous parts of Los Angeles and Las Vegas works brilliantly, and without any degree of irony. Whether it be a grotty bedsit or a €œproper boozer€, as Jimmy requests to be taken to, Hughes sets up every shot expertly and has a good command of his mise-en-scene. Sweeping aerial shots of the seafront also help to create the idea that the city is tangled web of criminality, calling to mind other crime classics such as Michael Mann€™s Heat. In truth, this film does at times feel like a big budget Hollywood blockbuster, which is a great counterpoint to the seediness of everything on show. The way the characters are introduced by naming them after different hard boiled sweets is also somewhat Tarantino-esque, though it doesn€™t really work beyond helping you remember who is who. In fact, the whole €œHard Boiled Sweets€ conceit feels a little tacked on, and you get the impression that the film may have been better served without it. Special credit must go to the cast too, a group of virtual unknowns who show that British acting is in a good place right now. The script as well is tight, never resorting to laboured exposition to keep you abreast of the story and offering up some great one liners. This film doesn€™t try to reinvent the wheel, but it takes a great old fashioned genre and brings it right up to date. Thoroughly entertaining and well worth seeking out. Hard Boiled Sweets will be released March 9th in the UK.