I taped this off HBO on July 23rd, 2017. No, it isn’t a remake of Ridley Scott’s Legend. It’s actually about the notorious twin British gangsters, the Kray brothers. Their story was probably most famously told in the 1990 movie The Krays, starring members of Spandau Ballet, Martin and Gary Kemp. Instead of using real-life brothers to portray the Krays, writer/director Brian (Payback) Helgeland opted to pull a Dead Ringers and give Tom Hardy not one, but two opportunities to chew the scenery.
Hardy plays both Ronnie and Reggie Kray, the underground gangsters who control London in the ‘60s. Ronnie is a bespectacled madman who can barely keep his bloodlust at bay. Reggie is only slightly more controlled and refined, if only because he’s anchored somewhat by his love for his girlfriend Frances (Emily Browning). As the brothers’ reign of terror (which includes racketeering, extortion, blackmail, and intimidation) grows, so does the divide between Reggie and Frances.
Helgeland is a gifted writer and a fine director, but he seems an odd fit for this film. Scenes feel assembled without conviction, the plot is episodic, and the pacing lacks an organic flow. Despite two twitchy hotheaded performances by Hardy, the movie itself feels kind of lifeless. Even a bloody pub brawl is sorely missing the directorial exuberance to make the violence pop. You know you’re in trouble when you start yearning for Guy Ritchie to take the helm and give it some bollocks.
The narration doesn’t really work either. At first it seems like it’s only there to humanize Reggie. Eventually, we learn that isn’t the case at all. So, why even bother? Because the movie would barely function without SOMEONE narrating to string all these slipshod scenes together.
I guess this would make a serviceable double feature with Bronson, another flick in which Hardy played a notorious English criminal. There’s even a similar scene where he goes toe to toe with several prison guards. Too bad it’s not nearly as outrageous as that film was.
Ultimately, all this is little more than a collection of half-sketched anecdotes, gangster cliches, and bloody set pieces in search of a movie. Still, if you ever wanted to see Tom Hardy fight himself, Legend will be worth a watch. Let’s face it, I’ve watched worse for less. That scene has a bit of a kick to it, but overall, the bulk of the picture is messy, rambling, and too unfocused to be wholly recommended.
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