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MOVIES / ON DVD / LAYER CAKE
Layer Cake

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Layer Cake (2005)

80%
100%
87%
N/A
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N/A
80 %
Reviews Counted: 123 Fresh: 98  Rotten:25 Average Rating: 7.1/10
 
Consensus: A stylized, electric British crime thriller. A stylized, electric British crime thriller. more
 
Runtime: 1 hr 45 mins
Synopsis:
LAYER CAKE, a riveting thriller set in the drug underworld of the UK, marks the directorial debut of producer Mathew Vaughn (Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch) and stars Daniel Craig, Colm Meaney, Kenneth Cranham, George Harris, Jamie Foreman, Sienna Miller and Michael... [More]
LAYER CAKE, a riveting thriller set in the drug underworld of the UK, marks the directorial debut of producer Mathew Vaughn (Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch) and stars Daniel Craig, Colm Meaney, Kenneth Cranham, George Harris, Jamie Foreman, Sienna Miller and Michael Gambon. Sleek, well dressed and polite, our unnamed hero (Daniel Craig) is a consummate professional. Treating cocaine and ecstasy like any other commodity, he has made a fortune for himself by keeping his hands clean and staying under the radar. Having made the decision to retire, his aim is to break free from the world of crime, drugs and violence and live a simple, quiet life with the money he has amassed. But before this can happen, crime boss Jimmy Price (Kenneth Cranham) wants two last favors from him. First, he must track down the missing, drug addict daughter of powerful criminal Eddie Temple (Michael Gambon). Second, he must negotiate the sale of a huge shipment of ecstasy with The Duke (Jamie Foreman), a loose cannon petty crook playing well out of his league. What should be routine transaction is anything but and nothing goes according to plan. Instead, duplicity and hidden alliances become the order of the day, in a struggle for power that reaches from the crack dens of London to the highest ranks of British society. Quickly he learns he is part of a machine much greater than he imagined, and getting out won't be quite as easy as getting in. Sony Pictures Classics presents a Matthew Vaughn Production, LAYER CAKE, starring Daniel Craig, Colm Meaney, Kenneth Cranham, George Harris, Jamie Foreman, Sienna Miller and Michael Gambon. Written by author J.J. Connolly (adapted from his novel of the same name), the film is produced by Vaughn, David Reid and Adam Bohling. The Executive Producer is Stephen Marks, Director of Photography is Ben Davis, Editor is Jon Davis and Production Designer is Kave Quinn. [Less]

Genre: Action/Adventure

Starring: Daniel Craig, Colm Meaney, George Harris, Jamie Foreman, Sienna Miller

Director: Matthew Vaughn
Screenwriter: J.J. Connolly
Producer: Matthew Vaughn, David Reid, Adam Bohling

DVD Info

Release:

Jan 3, 2008

[DVD Details]

Blu-Ray Features:

  • Anamorphic Widescreen

Audio:

  • Dolby Digital 5.1 - English
  • PCM 5.1 - English
  • Subtitles - Chinese, English, French, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai - Optional

Reviews

 
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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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06/24/06 04:19 AM
Time Out
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04/01/06 04:20 AM
Empire Magazine
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Clean, crisp and gratifying, you'd be hard pressed to find a better British film this year.

Full Review | Comment
07/05/05 07:16 PM
Dan Chant
FilmFocus
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Full Review | Comment
10/19/04 10:40 PM
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon
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It's slickly shot and enjoyable.

Full Review | Comment
10/19/04 10:40 PM
Nev Pierce
BBC
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While it's visually striking, with superior acting, it's also cluttered with a bewildering collection of characters and plot threads.

Full Review | Comment
10/19/04 10:40 PM
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall
N/R

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Full Review | Comment
05/26/06 03:17 AM
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid
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Intense story about low-level organized crime figures embroiled in a deadly conspiracy.

Full Review | Comment
03/10/06 06:14 PM
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope
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protagonist's narration puts the film's complex plot into much broader economic, political and cultural context.

Full Review | Comment
11/17/05 03:28 AM
Dragan Antulov
Draxblog Movie Reviews
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A smart thrill ride with one magnificent finish.

Full Review | Comment
10/07/05 04:32 PM
Forrest Hartman
Reno Gazette-Journal
N/R

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Full Review | Comment
09/26/05 03:16 AM
Onion AV Club
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Fun stuff indeed, even if you might need the subtitles to help decipher all the Britspeak.

Full Review | Comment
08/23/05 08:22 AM
Scott Weinberg
DVD Clinic
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It does nothing revolutionary, but it handles the basics with entertaining aplomb.

Full Review | Comment
07/28/05 10:41 PM
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com
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Just following what is going on is a big job, but the film has its rewards.

Full Review | Comment
07/08/05 04:14 AM
Mark R. Leeper
rec.arts.movies.reviews
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Layer Cake is not the most original or memorable picture in the world, but it's a great calling card for Vaughn.

Full Review | Comment
07/05/05 07:16 PM
Kevin N. Laforest
Montreal Film Journal
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This is one of the few movies for which I can’t tell you the name of the “hero.”

Full Review | Comment
06/27/05 09:08 PM
Linda Cook
KWQC-TV (Iowa)
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It's nothing we haven't seen before, but Vaughn invests it with enough style and energy to make it worth the trip.

Full Review | Comment
06/21/05 03:15 AM
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk
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I like Layer Cake a lot.

Full Review | Comment
06/20/05 02:44 PM
Richard Roeper
Ebert & Roeper
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...a delicious crime melodrama, with colorful characters, lots of action and violence, double and triple crosses, and a few fresh surprises of its own.

Full Review | Comment
06/19/05 12:33 PM
Daniel M. Kimmel
Worcester Telegram & Gazette
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...Michael Vaughn, has cooked up a tasty treat in his directorial debut, somewhere between Mike Hodges' cool and Guy Ritchie's out-of-control Smoking Barrels.

Full Review | Comment
06/15/05 02:42 PM
Lori Hoffman
Atlantic City Weekly
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