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The Long Good Friday

Play trailer Poster for The Long Good Friday R Released Apr 2, 1982 1h 54m Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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97% Tomatometer 31 Reviews 89% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
In the late 1970s, Cockney crime boss Harold Shand (Bob Hoskins), a gangster trying to become a legitimate property mogul, has big plans to get the American Mafia to bankroll his transformation of a derelict area of London into the possible venue for a future Olympic Games. However, a series of bombings targets his empire on the very weekend the Americans are in town. Shand is convinced there is a traitor in his organization, and sets out to eliminate the rat in typically ruthless fashion.
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The Long Good Friday

The Long Good Friday

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Critics Consensus

Bob Hoskins commands a deviously sinister performance in The Long Good Friday -- a gangster flick with ferocious intelligence, tight plotting and razor-edged thrills.

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Critics Reviews

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Anton Bitel Little White Lies John Mackenzie’s gangster film offers a panorama of Britain’s shifting place in the world during the Seventies. May 28, 2024 Full Review David Jenkins Little White Lies The simple, almost Shakespearean moral is that nefarious deeds breed a climate of contempt, and that any success will always be tainted. Rated: 4/5 Jun 23, 2015 Full Review Mark Kermode Observer (UK) Sheer brilliance. Rated: 5/5 Jun 21, 2015 Full Review James Kendrick Q Network Film Desk Hoskins and Mirren make a formidable pair; their emotional tension matches the physical violence around them, which makes The Long Good Friday into a true powder keg of a gangster melodrama. Rated: 3.5/4 Nov 22, 2024 Full Review Tom Cassidy Common Sense Media Without The Long Good Friday, it's hard to imagine the likes of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels existing. To its credit, the film still feels fresh despite its legacy in the movies that followed. May 30, 2023 Full Review Peter Ackroyd The Spectator The film lingers in the mind as an exposure of one man's illusions about himself and his world. Reality intrudes upon him like the hands around someone's neck. Mar 27, 2018 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Helen E The best British gangster film Rated 5 out of 5 stars 12/10/24 Full Review Ant O As much a period piece of a London part gone and certainly changed, the godfather of British gangster films still looms over them like Bob Hoskins looms over this film. Prescient and still packing a punch. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/07/24 Full Review Mark C Doesn't stand the test of time too well. Bob Hoskins was great in his role and the main theme song is so iconic. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 08/19/24 Full Review matthew w Bob Hoskins oozes menace as London crime boss Harold Shand, who in one violent weekend has to navigate a multi million pound deal with the mafia, as well as find a rat in his organzation while the IRA continually put pay to his plans. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/01/24 Full Review Nicolas M B- script. A+ Bob Hoskins. A phenomenal performance. Mirren good, too, of course. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 07/21/24 Full Review Alec C One of the most brutal and unflinching gangster films that have ever taken place in good ol' London! Bob Hoskins plays the conflicted crime lord struggling to go legit as an unknown enemy strikes from the shadows. With bombings and blood, this is a film where no one is safe from death. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/12/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Movie Info

Synopsis In the late 1970s, Cockney crime boss Harold Shand (Bob Hoskins), a gangster trying to become a legitimate property mogul, has big plans to get the American Mafia to bankroll his transformation of a derelict area of London into the possible venue for a future Olympic Games. However, a series of bombings targets his empire on the very weekend the Americans are in town. Shand is convinced there is a traitor in his organization, and sets out to eliminate the rat in typically ruthless fashion.
Director
John Mackenzie
Producer
Barry Hanson
Screenwriter
Barrie Keeffe
Distributor
Criterion Collection, Paragon Video, Embassy Pictures
Rating
R
Genre
Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 2, 1982, Wide
Release Date (DVD)
Nov 24, 1998
Runtime
1h 54m
Sound Mix
Mono
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