A real ass-kicker of a film The Limey is, isn't it? Beautifully shot and masterfully edited (by Sarah Flack), like a lot of great films, The Limey has several good things going for it. I'm in a list mood, so I'll just do that.

Casting:

Mamma mia! Debra Zane is the smart person behind getting Terrence Stamp, Peter Fonda and Barry Newman to all appear in a film together. Seriously, that's some fucking 60s zeitgeist right there. Spot on choices. Furthermore, having Luis Guzmán as the sidekick was a very good idea. Talk about an odd couple. Guzmán has long been one of my favorite character actors and he is capable of rising to the level of those around him, sometimes going over the top. Unfortunately, if the movie stinks, so does he. Still, I love the guy. Amelia Heinle, who plays Fonda's love interest, is so attractive that I'd suck her daddy's cock just to see where she came from (thanks, Doc). However, even though she is sitting in a bathtub 98% of the time she's on screen, we never see more than her shoulder blades. Lame. Continuing, the real coup of all coups casting-wise was the fantastic inclusion of the great Bill Duke as the head DEA dude. In three minutes, Duke steals the movie out from under all the other actors. Why doesn't this guy get more work? Also, in a film liberally peppered with great lines, one of his is the best; "I don't give a shit about the money. Personally? I prefer the heroin."

Ass-Kicking

Holy shit is there is a lot of ass-kicking taking going on in The Limey. First of all, Nicky Katt was pretty cruel as Stacy the hitman. His retard sidekick was no schlub, either. They don't get to do much ass-kicking, but the little we see is brutal. In a pool hall, Stacy and his buddy are arguing with these two dudes about who gets to break. Stacy finally says, "I'd tell you to blow it out your ass, but my dick's in the way." What a line! One of the dudes makes a move towards Stacy and BAM, he gets hit in the back of the head with a pool cue. As he drops to his knees, Stacy smashes him in the face with a knee. Great shit. Also, during the finale shootout, Stacy's sidekick shoots a bodyguard in the ankle, crumpling him to the ground. He then shoots him in the arm. Pleading for his life, the wounded man cries, "Don't! I'm a friend of Stacy's!" Which is answered with, "Shut the fuck up, Tom." Oh, and then a he kills him.

But, really, The Limey is about Terrance Stamp as a one man wrecking crew. Fucking Ruthless. We first see his ferocity when Wilson (Stamp) breaks into a warehouse where his daughter had confronted some men before she died. He does one of those great smashes-the guys-head-into-the desk jobs that you only get to see in movies. The guy's goons pull him off and begin roughing Wilson up. Then, the smashed-face guy works him over. Daunted? Hardly. With an animal like growl his smashes the guy in the nuts. The goons then kick his ass out of the warehouse and dump him in the street. Daunted? You know where this is going. Wilson gets back to his feet and with more swagger than Mick Jagger at his best, saunters back into the warehouse and slaughters four men in ten seconds. Even more awesome is that we don't see a thing. We hear it. The camera never budges. Then, a kid comes running out of the warehouse -- the only survivor -- and Wilson follows him out, a gun in each hand, bellowing, "Tell 'em I'm coming! Tell 'em I'm fucking coming!!!" Badass shit.

In a comedic twist, Wilson dispenses with Terry Valentine's (Fonda) bodyguard by first head-butting him and then tossing the four-hundred-pound man off a railing to his death. What's so great about this shot is that the camera is inside Valentine's house looking at the action through a window while guests mill about at a party. Valentine sees the big man drop from the corner of his eye, but really he only catches a shadow. What he does see is Wilson straighten his jacket and begin walking back towards the house. Wilson then jumps in the car with Eduardo (Guzmán) and go tearing off down the hill. Avery (always a treat to watch Barry Newman behind the wheel of a car) is in hot pursuit. Aftera bit, Avery smashes his car into theirs. Then he jumps out with a shotgun and starts blasting. Very cool. But, one million times cooler is Wilson's response. From the passenger seat, he throw's the car into reverse, mashes the gas and very nearly mashes Avery against his own car. The impact sends Avery's Mercedes tumbling over a cliff and Avery himself is forced to slink away into the bushes. Then Wilson gets out of the car, .357 in hand and is going to shoot Avery point blank. Eduardo talks him out of it. And the ending, well... let's just say this: at the end of the flick, Valentine is shooting at Wilson and the bastard doesn't even break stride. He just keeps sneering and coming.

You know what? I'm late and it's tired. I could go on and on singing The Limey's praises, but it is sufficient for me to end it here. The trifecta of Stamp, Newman and Fonda is a wonder and not to be missed. Additionally, Stamp's heavy cockney accent is a joy to listen to. Stuff like:

Wilson: I'm gonna 'ave a "butcher's" round the house.
Eduardo: Who you gonna butcher?
Wilson: Butcher's hook... look.

...is just fantastic. Lem Dobbs, who penned this (and oddly, Dark City) made the whole film snap in a totally satisfying way. Wilson's "colorful" expressions in lesser hands would have been a reoccurring joke that no one would want to hear. Not so here. I remember when I first saw this film, I watched it twice in a row; literally back-to-back. There are only a handful of films I can say that about. Treat yourself to this one.