The Krays (film)

Plot

The film explores the lives of the Kray twins from childhood to adulthood. The plot focuses on the relationship between the twins and their doting mother (Whitelaw). Ronald (Gary Kemp) is the dominant one, influencing his brother Reginald (Martin Kemp) to perform several acts of violence as they rise to power as the leaders of a powerful organised gang in 1960s London. The movie focuses on the personal life of the brothers, including Reg's marriage and then alienation from his wife, who commits suicide.

The movie takes some liberties with historical facts, as it omits the police investigation of the Krays, which led to a trial, convictions and imprisonment. It ends with a jump-cut to their attending their mother's funeral in 1982, having been temporarily released from prison to do so.

Cast

• Billie Whitelaw as Violet Kray
• Tom Bell as Jack McVitie
• Gary Kemp as Ronnie Kray
• Martin Kemp as Reggie Kray
• Susan Fleetwood as Rose
• Charlotte Cornwell as May
• Kate Hardie as Frances
• Avis Bunnage as Helen
• Alfred Lynch as Charlie Kray Sr.
• Gary Love as Steve
• Steven Berkoff as George Cornell
• Jimmy Jewel as Cannonball Lee
• Barbara Ferris as Mrs. Lawson
• Victor Spinetti as Mr. Lawson
• John McEnery as Eddie Pellam
• Patti Love as Iris
• Norman Rossington as Shopkeeper
• Michael Balfour as Referee
• Jimmy Flint as Perry
• Michael Joseph Carr as Eddie
• Ian Burfield as Whip
• Murray Melvin as Newsagent
• Sadie Frost as Sharon Pellam
• Stephen Lewis as Policeman
• Angus MacInnes as Palendri
• Jamie Bennett as Reggie Kray aged 12
• Jason Bennett as Ronnie Kray aged 12
• Dave Courtney as Bill

Production

While at the offices of Fugitive Features, the company that produced his two short films Visiting Mr. Beak and The Universe of Dermot Finn, Philip Ridley overheard two executives discussing their efforts to make a film about the Kray twins and how over the course of 20 years various producers and screenwriters had failed to produce anything. Acting on speculation and without informing the producers, Ridley spent three weeks during a Christmas holiday developing a script that was immediately accepted by the producers which Ridley attributed to avoiding getting bogged down in historical details.

Reception

The Krays holds a rating of 82% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 17 reviews. In November 2024, Burdis said that he regretted "glamourising" Ronnie and Reggie Kray, and was developing a new film to portray them as the thugs they were. "They weren't folk heroes," he told The Guardian. "They were just a pair of cowardly psychopathic bullies, who terrorised the East End of London in the 1960s."

Box office

The film opened at the top of the UK box office with a gross of £1,036,117 for the week. It remained at number one for a second week and ultimately grossed £3,707,649 ($7 million) at the UK box office. In the United States and Canada, it grossed $2,060,847.

Awards

• Nominee Best Supporting Actress – BAFTA (Billie Whitelaw)
• Winner Best Film – Evening Standard British Film Awards (Peter Medak)
• Winner Most Promising Newcomer – Evening Standard British Film Awards (Philip Ridley)
• Winner Best Actress – International Fantasy Film Awards (Fantasporto) (Billie Whitelaw)
• Nominee Best Film – International Fantasy Film Awards (Fantasporto) (Peter Medak)
• Winner George Delerue Prize for Music – Film Fest Gent (Michael Kamen)

References

References

1. Maslin, Janet. (9 November 1990). "The Krays (1990) Review/Film; Twin Thugs With a Mother Complex". [[The New York Times]].
2. Clarke, Jeremy. "Grisly Ridley". [[Third Way (magazine).
3. French, Philip. (2012-07-07). "The 10 best east London films". the Guardian.
4. Stanley, John. (October 1992). "Philip Ridley". Fourth Castle Micromedia.
5. Alberge, Dalya. (3 November 2024). "I regret glamorising the Kray twins, says producer of hit film". The Observer.
6. (9 May 1990). "U.K. Top 10 Films".
7. Pitman, Jack. (16 May 1990). "Good weather bad for biz; Scandi, Paris fall sharply".
8. (2005). "Back to the Future: The Fall and Rise of the British Film Industry in the 1980s – An Information Briefing". British Film Institute.
9. {{Mojo title. krays