Layer Cake (2004) [Movie Review]

Layer Cake opens with Daniel Craig's unnamed character explaining London's criminal underworld. Craig's character, addressed in the credits as XXXX, is a very successful and smart cocaine dealer with a hatred for guns. He doesn't see himself as a criminal, simply a businessman. I'm going to spoil as little as possible, because I think that everyone should simply watch this film for themselves. Right before his early retirement, he get's two jobs; the two jobs set the film up for a superb cinematic experience. So many things happen in this film, it's almost hard to keep up with it.

As stated above, this film has many layers to it. If you blink, there's a damn good chance you'll miss something important. But wow, this film was amazing. Every one of the actors make it seem not like you're watching a movie, but that you are somehow in their world, watching them. The plot of this film is out of this world. I certainly was not expecting such a complete movie. Not many movies successfully can have multiple plot elements simultaneously being introduce and executed. The cinematography was beautiful, which helped make the movie feel real. And the ending was simply superb. It's not often that an ending is actually good, especially when it's for a movie that you don't want to end; but somehow this film managed to have a great ending. I personally recommend this to any cinema lover.

Rating: 8/10

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Discussion topic: Do you think it's possible to do something illegal for a living but still be a "good" guy?