Stickmen

This film has to be one of the all time best from us Kiwi's. It has managed to wrap comic material with menace and poolhall excitement in a great entertainment package. I hope it does enormously well on the international stage - it deserves to.

A very enjoyable movie, probably aimed more at those with a Kiwi/Oz style sense of humor. It may even go over the heads of anyone who has a limited grasp of Kiwi/Oz modern-day culture. So those viewers who find no pleasure in this movie should not try to dissuade those who haven't seen it from checking it out. A bit of blokey fun for those who enjoy a laugh with their mates. Check it out. 9/10

Stickmen was great on video for an easy night in. Having heard positive feedback about it for so long I was pleasantly surprised when my high expectations were not disappointed. Sure - it bore some similarities to Lock Stock, but who cares? The caper genre is nothing new. Plans are made, foiled, remade, and the crafty plot comes with some genuinely funny laughs. In fact, I liked it better than Lock Stock for the mere fact that in the place of mass gratuitous violence was a game: we see more confrontations with pool cues than with guns, and yet Stickmen still maintains the seedy/tough flavour. Not only that but there are female characters who are central to the plot, and they even have their own personalities! A great piece of filmmaking.

Did you like Guy Ritchie's fabulous, "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels"? Want to see it butchered by people that obviously have no idea what they're doing? I was alerted to this film by a few Kiwi friends (who else?). They obviously take a lot of pride in it. They were clearly not happy when I gave them my verdict. "Stickmen" is EXACTLY the kind of trash that should be avoided at all costs. All areas of it are derivative. The performances, the style, the "dialogue". Well, the attempts at all of the above anyway. All are forced, unfunny and lack any sense of narrative coherence. It "looks" nice (although that look itself is stolen from Richies film). But thats it. If my verdict was one of those amusing "smilies", it'd be the one with the eyes planted firmly upwards. As it happens, all I have are numbers. Thus: 1/10.

This film throws the audience into the world of underground pool and leaves them with the main characters who are all slick and funny. The plot is very straightforward and well paced to keep the audience engaged.

A must see! Those Kiwi's really know how to make a movie. Wellington was an excellent place to shoot this movie. Great pubs, people, and entertainment. The "downtrough" had to be one of the most memorable parts of the movie, how embarrassing would that be if that happened to you. Check it out, you'll be impressed.

Heavily influenced by Guy Richie's 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels', with a similar plot (a few likeable lads get in over their heads with colourful local gangsters), style (slow-motion and other camera tricks, dark humour, some sexy violence) and setting (the seedier side a big city, particularly lots of bars), this is an enjoyable if shallow piece of pulp film. Like most Kiwi films some of the acting leaves a bit to be desired, none of the characters are particularly deep, you won't learn any higher truths or even move your intellect out of second gear, but it is good fun, particularly if you enjoy a bit of pool. Wait for the entrance of 'The Men In Black': it's the movie's best scene. 6/10