Charlie Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES PLOT SUMMARY
Set in post WWII Britain, the compelling drama traces the rise and fall of Charlie Richardson (Luke Goss) who has gone down in history as the most notorious and powerful crime lord in London.
| Luke Goss | Charlie Richardson |
| Steven Berkoff | Charlie Richardson Snr |
| Leslie Grantham | Richard Waldeck |
| Anita Dobson | Charlie's Mum |
| Marius Weyers | Van Den Bergh |
| Nicole Sherwin | Jean Le Grange |
| Douglas McFerran | Richard Aubury |
| Langley Kirkwood | Eddy Richardson |
| Jeroen Kranenburg | Defence Brief |
| Mark Arden | Cyril Green |
| Tony Longhurst | Roy Hall |
| Chris Curran | Frankie Fraser |
| Andrew Brent | Jack Duval |
| Bruce Young | Lucian Harris |
| Antony Carrick | Justice Lawton |
| Malcolm Needs |
5.40 out of 10 (305 votes)
Visitor Reviews
malcolm needs squeezes out another stinker!
posted on 03 Jun 2009You'd think that after the critical and financial disaster of "Shoreditch" (AKA the one that lost Shane Richie half a million) Malcolm Needs (AKA The Next Michael Winner) would have learned his lesson. Alas, he makes all the same mistakes in this hackneyed and forgettable slice of inane hokum. This lurid film's only saving grace is the brief appearance of Steven Berkoff.
Hypocrisy.
posted on 19 Mar 2009'Charlie' (Malcolm Needs, 2004)What irritates me the most about 'Charlie' is the hypocrisy of its argument. The makers of the film fawningly present Richardson as a good decent and innocent man. Why, then, do they revel in showing his vicious criminal activity? The message of this film gets lost in the midst of pretentious formal tics and the most embarrassing courtroom scenes committed to celluloid. For English film culture, all this film represents is sad proof that for every Sam Mendes, there's a Malcolm Needs.Come on Blighty, we can do better than this!
Slick gangster movie with sex violence and corruption in equal measures
posted on 11 Dec 2008I rented Charlie at the weekend and thought the film was great. I did not know anything about the Richardson's before watching the film and am now pleased I was not living in London in the 60's. I think the director portrayed the violence and corruption of the time splendidly. And I think casting Luke Goss as the lead was inspirational. I have long been a fan of Lesley Grantham, and liked seeing him play against cast. It was great to see the 60's being brought back to life through the costumes and cars, I especially liked the cars. The scenes between Charlie and General Van Den Bergh were particularly chilling. I was left wondering at the end of the film if that was today, how long would Charlie Richardson been sentenced to? I would recommend this film to my friends.
This film is very POOR.
posted on 15 Nov 2008In the 60's, London was ruled by two gangs: The Krays...and The Richardsons....Lead by the notorious Charlie. Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah.........After watching the lastest London gangster film I looked at my watch & said to myself "What a waste of 90 mins". This film really is poor, poor in every way, acting, script, direction, everything, This is the first film by Malcolm Needs that I have seen (I know he's only made two) & I hope it's my last, I was squirming in my seat at every word, what is it with British gangster movies, we just can't do it, When you watch the Americans do it you believe it, you believe the nutters in those films would stab you in the neck with a pen just for the fun of it. This film is "A True Story", will I don't care how true it is, it's rubbish. Malcolm Needs to go back to Film School or Malcolm Needs a head transplant, I Needs a drink !!.
Another kick in the teeth for British film
posted on 05 Nov 2008I think those reviewers who gave this pathetic effort more than one star must have been watching a different version to the one I watched. Even one star is a stretch. Quite frankly if this is the standard we can expect from the British Film industry then no wonder it doesn't do as well as we all hope. The acting was shocking, the script was pathetic (if your offended by profanity leave this off your list - the F or C word must have appeared in every other sentence. And despite the film's subject this was completely OTT), and the plot progression laughable. But then what can you really expect from a movie starring one of the Goss twins, Dirty Den and Brian May's Mrs? Oh and why the hell did Steven Berkoff agree to do this?!!!
Pretty Average
posted on 20 Oct 2008Charlie is a film that never lives up to its potential. With an actor like Paul Bettany in the lead role, and a director of higher calibre, it could have been a very impressive work. Charlie turns out to be a rather unpleasant little movie that plods along from scene to scene with no real narrative focus. This is Charlie's greatest fault: the film goes nowhere and as a result creates indifference in the viewer. The direction is pedestrian at best, lacking the film making fireworks that defines the hugely watchable gangster capers of Guy Richie and Martin Scorsese. I'd give this film 2 out of 10.
mini review
posted on 14 Jul 2008This is a British movie through and through, and something that we should be proud of - it's not often we get home grown films of this calibre. After getting a sneak preview at the premiere this Monday it's a slick, classy gangster movie with fantastic performances from Luke Goss (charlie richardson) and Chris Curran (frank frasier). Go and see it for yourself - just be prepared for the swearing!
60's gangster movie pitting the gangsters against the establishment
posted on 07 Dec 2007At long last a British gangster movie that does more than just swear, shoot and stab. This movie has all the violence you would expect from 60's gangster ridden London, but it also has a lot more to it. Luke Goss plays gangland boss Charlie Richardson whose gang rules South of the London River whilst the Krays rule North. Charlie is a slick movie that moves effortlessly from the streets of London, to the planes of South Africa to the infamous gangster haven of Spain. It was great to see some real British acting talent from Anita Dobson, Leslie Grantham and Steven Berkoff. The Director uses some clever editing tricks to give the movie a real 60's feel. I loved this movie; if you haven't seen it yet, rent it now.
Enjoyed this Film
posted on 14 Oct 2007Never read the book and just recently viewed the film and enjoyed the actor playing Charlie along with the rest of the cast of players who gave Charlie a hard time including his wife who found other love interests. However, Charlie had so many one-night-stands he lost count of all the love making.All his wife had to do was have one affair and it turned his entire life around including breaking up with his buddy and friend at a local auto repair shop. The story opens up with Charlie carrying a Christmas Wreath for his wife's home and then there is a flash back as to just what Charlie had done in his past up to the present moment. Entertaining film, enjoy.
a good true-crime biography, but a little bit thin on details
posted on 11 Apr 2007The strengths of this movie are Luke Goss as the Charlie, and the truth, or at least believability, of the history. The film shifts back and force between Charlie's life as he tells it, and as it is portrayed by the prosecution during his trial. In one version he is respectable thief, stealing primarily from the government, and all-around nice guy. In the other he is a viscous sadist, torturing anyone who displeases him. In both versions he is charming, clever, and competent.The movie's main weakness is the way that the story skips through small events without ever giving you the big picture. None of the other characters are developed much, and you don't see the progress of his relationships with the other gang members nor how he builds his business. Although the film is only 95 minutes long, it feels longer because it crams so many short scenes in. But because the scenes are disconnected and repetitive, it misses much of the story.If the film was fiction, I wouldn't have enjoyed it, but as a true story it is fascinating.
Wow, what a shame
posted on 04 Mar 2007Okay, I grew up in Bethnal Green East London and I have to say that nobody and I mean nobody sounds like that! Goss did a good job, really with what he had around him he did okay, but South Africa? What was going on? Literally you can pick the scenes that are shot there it's like they are another colour or something? Have you been to East London? It's grey, very dark and gloomy and that's in July. In this movie the sun is shining every day, it's blinding, you can feel it. Seriously guys it could have been great, really, maybe SA is cheap or something but come on, keep it real please! Nice effort I'm sure you guys all worked hard but come on you can do better than that right?
weak
posted on 09 Jan 2007Another month, another low-rent British gangster thriller.Like Circus/Rancid Aluminium/Gangster Number 1/Love Honour and Obey et al, Charlie is a poorly made Tarantino rip-off that plays more like a rushed GCSE media project than classics like Reservoir Dogs or Kill Bill. Tarantino's genius lies in his masterful balancing of razor-sharp dialogue, eye-popping style and brilliant storytelling technique. Charlie, on the other hand, features leaden expletive-ridden dialogue, unimaginative violence and mockney posers in cheap suits.The film's argument is extremely one-sided. The storytelling is scattershot and confused. It's not a film that the audience can ever really 'get into'. Because of this, watching the film becomes very tiresome. Every cliche imaginable is used, often several times.Luke Goss comes across more like an angry Grattan's Catalogue model than a hard-as-nails gangster, although at times he shows some potential. In a better movie he could be an actor to watch. Charlie isn't that movie. The rest of the cast are uniformly weak.The film's violence is excessive, and handled in a very childish way. It's like the director wants to shock the audience, but makes the mistake of going to the extent to which we lose any sympathy with Goss' character.Attempts at humour are poorly handled and are actually offensive - one 'gag' in particular is extremely racist and condescending.I'd give this film 1 out of 10. Watch The Krays instead - it's a lot better than this.
Charlie
posted on 07 Sep 2006This has to be rated a 10/10 cos it is an excellent movie. Although there were some parts that were changed or exaggerated on it is almost true to what actually happened!! Most of the actors that played the characters look similar to the actual people involved in the gang. I have read my uncle Eddies' book and my mum has told me all about what happened (as she forbids me from seeing Charlie who is in fact her dad) and the film is rather true to it all. Glad to see my Grandad made such an everlasting impact on Britain! I hope all others that have seen it enjoyed it as much as i do. I would recommend it to anyone and everyone who is interested in The Richardson gang. But really i recommend it to everyone i no.
Don't expect to sympathise ... expect to be impressed
posted on 28 May 2006I first saw Luke Goss acting in Blade 2, and considering the make up he had on I guess that was quite an exploit I thought "hey that one's acting real good !" That's how I landed on Charlie, which came unadvertised in France, besides the fact that the characters it is based on are utterly unknown here. I gave a 10/10 to this film mainly because of the acting. On the whole, the "trial-structure" with flashbacks is quite conventional, yet the filming and the scenario are well-knit, and as regards the image, the contrast between the British greys and blue tones with the blinding and warm colours of South Africa are particularly well conveyed. One does not escape a feeling of unease since virtually NO message is conveyed. Through positive and mainly negative people talking about Charlie Richardson and the flash back scenes, the viewer is maintained at a certain distance of the character. I guess that's the reason why many viewers consider this movie as a failure : it does not seek sympathy and simply presents scenes of which we are not really told how true they are. There is virtually no personal insight in Charlie Richardson's personality, only a patchwork of different scenes, personal and criminal, and even the comments the actor makes do not convey a personal impact. This is maybe the force of this film : though not claiming for a documentary dimension, it does achieve the effect by its coldness. If it's on purpose, that's brilliant As far as the acting is concerned, the whole cast is regularly good, and Luke Goss is outstanding. As pointed out in other comments, he impersonates Charlie Richardson with great passion and does convey an impression of grim humour and dangerousness, with complexity. I would add that Charlie Richardson himself approved of his being cast for the role on meeting him, and "fell for the guy".By the way, as for those who would like to know, yes, even with this hairstyle, he is damn hot :P ( sorry, one remains a human being, even before a gangster movie :)
Cool Film
posted on 02 Apr 2006This is a cool film with excellent performances all round. I loved the way it flashed back from the court scenes and wouldn't want to meet the man himself in a dark alley! For me it captured the gangster thinking of the day, how they saw themselves in their little world and the people around them. I gave it 8/10.
dull gangland drama
posted on 09 Mar 2006after the mega-flop 'shoreditch', spectacularly untalented director malcolm needs tries to make a gripping crime film. He fails, of course. 'charlie' is a self-indulgent and glib film. it looks cheap and tacky, and there's no storyline to speak of. putting bros 'star' luke goss in the film was a real error, akin to casting andi peters in a 50 cent biopic. file under 'crap Lock, Stock wannabe'.
Cheap production
posted on 26 Oct 2005I was not impressed with this movie at all. The very cheap production was very noticeable. The feeling is of a TV documentary, possibly something from National Geographic.The only reason I went to see this movie is because an user here on IMDB compared this movie with my all time favourites 'Lock Stock...' and 'Snatch'. Do not be confused, 'Charlie' can't be compared with the said movies in any way whatsoever.The only thing worth seeing in this movie was Luke Goss performance as 'Charlie'. Very realistic and performed with a lot of passion.The lingering images in my mind are the gory and realistic torture scenes of various individuals.I would not recommend this movie to my worst enemies; my friends even less.
A decent, brutal and funny film!
posted on 24 Oct 2005I was not expecting much from this film after the reviews I have read. However, I was very surprised to find myself thoroughly enjoying this film.It is a very English film with some fantastic dark humour. I particularly liked the part where he is to be conscripted into the British Army.I am not concerned at all as to the historical correctness of the film as it is not claiming to be a documentary. Although, even if only 10% of the tales are vaguely correct then it gives you some idea what life was like for The Krays and Co.The acting was 'real' and the choice of Luke Goss to play Charlie turned out to be a very good one in my opinion.Give it a try - but don't watch it with your Granny!
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Gee this one's a a turkey
posted on 18 Aug 2009I have spent a lot of time in Camberwell and know the Richardson stories that have been around for years, but Malcom Needs lost the plot with this so called pic of the Richardsons. Charlie Richardson must have cringed if he saw how he was portrayed in this dreadful movie. Luke Goss isn't a bad actor as it happens but was miscast here although it will do him no harm, most of the ensemble were good but the script was so bad I was thankful for the pop tunes slipped in like an episode of Heartbeat. The South African thing veered off course continuously and the scrapyard looked more like it was run by Frasier, with a shiny new engine block hanging from above. Sorry but I would only rate this movie 2/10