Cinema fans who appreciate non-standard films will immediately name the names of contemporary directors considered cult. And most likely, this name will also be on this list - Guy Ritchie. The filmography of the director is not distinguished by a huge number of projects, but those that exist satisfy the most sophisticated audience expectations.
It started small
The future master from cinema was born in 1968. The place of his birth was Hatfield (UK). And although in the future everyone stubbornly perceived the director as coming from simple working areas (which was facilitated by Richie's films), Guy's father was a very successful executive director of a London advertising company. And the stepfather did own a seventeenth-century family estate. But the image of the guy from the gateway still firmly entrenched in the director.
The primordial Londoner Guy Ritchie began with very modest forms. He shot small demos for various music groups, and also directed commercials. Warming up in this way, he at the same time raised money for a full-fledged film. True, the first work anyway was the short film "The Difficult Case". However, this did not detract from its merits. The energy of the story invented and embodied by the director was so expressive that the idea was able to hook Sting. The famous singer without hesitation agreed to star in the next project. He became the film "Cards, money, two trunks."
Trunks and cards
The painting "Cards, money, two trunks" has opened the world a new name - Guy Ritchie. The filmography of the director has a truly bright start. The unusual story underlying the script, painstaking visualization of the plot, the exact selection of actors who ideally fit into the images - this is the set of tricks that became the key to success, although it does not explain just the adrenaline atmosphere of the film.
It was in the first work that the main features of the subsequent works of the London bully were determined. This is a skillful balancing on the verge of humor, violence, reality and rampant fiction. By the way, the film was shot in the notorious district of London - Soho. And one of the actors is Nick Moran, himself a native of the East End. He knows firsthand the mores of the inhabitants there. And the actor’s father talked a lot about the regulars of local pubs.
Take the jackpot
The second brainchild of the director was implemented in a recognizable style of a gangster action movie. But then again, the familiar genre surprised and delighted with its dissimilarity. One hit is an accident, the second is a regularity. "Big Jackpot" showed that Guy Ritchie's films are knocked out of a series of single-faced fighters. The London gangster showdown very much looked like an intellectual banter.
Casting in the new project also does not disappoint. It lit up the actors from Ritchie’s previous tape about gamblers and a few new faces. In an unexpected role for himself, Brad Pitt appeared on the screen, who, in The Big Kush, is certainly far from the image of a romantic handsome that has taken root by that time. Which once again confirms the idea that Guy Ritchie’s films easily destroy stereotypes rooted in the mass consciousness .
Taken to another genre
In the third full-length film, Richie tried to get away from the already mastered action genre. "Gone" belong to the category of comedy melodramas. Indeed, this was a surprise for the director's fans. Perhaps Richie decided on such an experiment, staying in a happy marriage with Madonna. She also starred in the lead role. And although the tape did not receive enthusiastic responses from fans and critics, the game of the shocking singer deserves separate praise. And the melodrama diluted the gangster films of Guy Ritchie. The list of his projects has expanded.
"Revolver"
In his next film, the director returned to his usual course: cards, bandits, shooting and black humor. And also a clever fiction bordering on absurdity. In general, the viewer received an explosive cocktail, which he managed to miss. It was the familiar and beloved Guy Ritchie. His filmography was replenished again with another successful project.
The main role was played by the director’s longtime favorite - the impenetrable and brutal Jason Statham. His partner in the film was the eminent Ray Liotta.
The director in Revolver outdid himself: frantic action, psychedelics and adrenaline mix in an unpredictable and confusing plot. Many critics broke their brains, trying to streamline the viewing spectacle, which stubbornly did not want to decompose into components.
It's all rock and roll
"Rock and Roll" immediately after the release was credited to the best films by Guy Ritchie. The hand of the master is already felt in it. The picture has a recognizable atmosphere of London: nooks, pubs, shady tycoons, pals and crazy idiots. The latter, oddly enough, manage to get out even of the most hopeless situations in which they drive themselves.
And again, a delightful acting game awaits us, gorgeously shot field plans and an abyss of humor.
Unusual Sherlock
Fans who were waiting for Guy Ritchie's new films to be released were rewarded with information that the Londoner was going to film the world famous saga Arthur Conan Doyle about the detective from Baker Street. News received from the set shocked ardent fans of Sherlock Holmes. It’s just that the new Sherlock didn’t mate with the classic character in any way. He was younger, more adventurous. And he did not like to indulge in thoughtful fabrications in a chair by the fireplace. He acted!
The output of the first part was stunned. The picture was either confessed in love, or vehemently not accepted.
But to stop there and refuse to continue the story was not part of the director's plans. Otherwise, it would not be Guy Ritchie. The filmography of his work was soon supplemented by the second part of the adventures of the great Holmes.
New names
Cinema fans around the world can thank Guy Ritchie with a pure heart not only for atmospheric films, but also for his amazing ability to find talented actors and give them the opportunity to open up. It is noticed that the appearance in the film of a cult director (even in the role of a very tiny one) gives the career of a performer simply rapid acceleration. At the same time, Richie manages to consider acting data in people very far from art.
For example, Vinnie Jones. He made his debut in the first picture of the master - "Cards, money, two trunks." A colorful figure could not be overlooked. And few people knew then that Winnie was a football star, and he arrived on the set straight from the police station, where he got because of his explosive nature.
Another example is Jason Statham. Guy Ritchie's “Revolver,” “Cards, Money, Two Trunks,” “Big Jackpot” - the actor starred in almost all the director’s films. Statham never studied acting. In the past, he was part of the Olympic team in diving. Then he moonlighted as a trader. And even starred somehow in an advertisement. In this video, he was noticed by Guy Ritchie.
London's next discovery is Tom Hardy. Before the role of Handsome Bob in the film "Rock and Roll", the British did not really notice. There were minor roles, low-budget projects. The secondary, but incredibly bright character in the cult film nominated the actor in the big leagues.
Despite the fact that Guy Ritchie started directing quite late, his success and contribution to the cinema has not been discussed for a long time. And although the list of paintings is not impressive in quantity (it is almost completely mentioned above, with the exception of the film “Suspect”), but each tape is remembered and inevitably falls into collections with selected movie masterpieces.