"The Wee Man" is an above average British gangster flick that has a serious pacing issue in the final act, and too few memorable characters, to make it a classic.
There are so many British gangster flicks that there are even a few that are considered classics, such as "The Long Good Friday", "Get Carter", and "Mona Lisa". I've never seen one set in Scotland, though. This one is allegedly based on a real person. The movie feels fairly realistic as it shows his embrace of crime and what led him to it. You can empathise; the man isn't just a cold hearted killer.
When it gets involved with the details of criminal life, the movie loses a bit of ground because it's hard to tell who everybody is. The movie eventually becomes a series of shootings that tries to wrap it up a bit too quickly.
Despite having an R18+ rating here in Australia the violence isn't particularly graphic, but there is a fair bit of it.
It's probably a must-see for British gangster film fans, but anybody else can skip it.
There are so many British gangster flicks that there are even a few that are considered classics, such as "The Long Good Friday", "Get Carter", and "Mona Lisa". I've never seen one set in Scotland, though. This one is allegedly based on a real person. The movie feels fairly realistic as it shows his embrace of crime and what led him to it. You can empathise; the man isn't just a cold hearted killer.
When it gets involved with the details of criminal life, the movie loses a bit of ground because it's hard to tell who everybody is. The movie eventually becomes a series of shootings that tries to wrap it up a bit too quickly.
Despite having an R18+ rating here in Australia the violence isn't particularly graphic, but there is a fair bit of it.
It's probably a must-see for British gangster film fans, but anybody else can skip it.