This is a review of the 2005 movie The Business starring Danny Dyer, Tamer Hassan, Georgina Chapman, and Geoff Bell
Plot Summary: A restless young man from South London is recruited to deliver a tin stuffed full of cash to a contact in southern Spain. Having no idea that this delivery to a super-suave playboy and ex-con will change his life forever, he soon becomes one of the gang, and finds himself drawn into a flamboyant and violent world of organized crime.
Me: I love the Brits. When it comes to entertainment, our cousins across the pond have given us some really good stuff over the years. Four Weddings and A Funeral, The Bridge on the River Kwai, Monty Pythons Life of Brian, and A Clockwork Orange immediately come to mind.
The Honeybee: How can you leave out the James Bond movies? I couldnt imagine Bond being any nationality other than British, could you?
Me: Not really. Although if Bollywood manages to unleash their version of the Bond franchise I know I definitely want to see it.
The Honeybee: Please tell me youre not going to equate the British movie we just saw last night with any of those classics. Are you?
Me: Uh, no. The Business ain’t a classic, but it’s not a bad movie either.
The Honeybee: So why dont you give us all a little overview of the movie?
Me: Why dont you give it for a change?
The Honeybee: Haven’t we had this discussion before, Mr. Moviefone? Because this is your show and I dont get paid enough for this gig.
Me: You dont get paid anything for this gig.
The Honeybee: Thank you.
Me: For what?
The Honeybee: Exactly.
Me: Huh?
The Honeybee: Oh brother. Can we please move on?
Me: Set in the 1980s, The Business is a British version of GoodFellas, although it is not as good as the Scorsese classic. Frankie (Danny Dyer) is on the run from the law and escapes to southern Spain’s so-called Costa del Crime, where he hooks up with a nightclub club owner named Charlie (Tamer Hassan), who works for another local crime boss named Sammy (Geoff Bell). Got that?
The Honeybee: What’s not to get? Charlie is illegally importing drugs and he is making a fortune, which doesnt go unnoticed by Frankie. Soon after they meet, Charlie ends up taking Frankie under his wing and teaches him all about the finer side of the illegal drug business.
Me: Not surprisingly, Frankie, takes to it like a duck takes to water.
The Honeybee: Like a duck takes to water?
Me: That was pretty lame, huh? Anyway, before you know it, Frankie and Charlie are running marijuana and, later, cocaine from Morocco. As their empire grows ever bigger and more successful, Frankie begins to mix business with pleasure, first by playing with Sammy’s flirtatious wife Carly (Georgina Chapman), and then by overindulging in the drugs they are selling.
The Honeybee: Ive always said that the only successful drug dealers are the ones who dont partake in what they sell. Once Frankie and Charlie started using the drugs they were selling their empire starts to quickly fall apart.
Me: Here I think director Nick Love does a good job of building the tension as things start unraveling.
The Honeybee: I thought so too. What I really liked about this movie though was the great 80s soundtrack including some classic tunes from Simple Minds, Duran Duran, A Flock of Seagulls, David Bowie, and Blondie. The music really pushed the movies pacing and kept things really peppy.
Me: Peppy or preppy?
The Honeybee: Peppy preppy pacing.
Me: Peppy preppy pacing, Peter Piper?
The Honeybee: Precisely.
Me: Please. I thought the, um, preppy peppy 80s soundtrack actually provided a nice dichotomy when played against the dark pickled-pepper subject matter of the drug business and violence.
The Honeybee: Oh look, we’re out of time!
Me: No we’re not.
The Honeybee: Yes – we are. So give whoever hasn’t already moved on to a more interesting website your overall opinion of this flick, would ya?
Me: Overall, although it wasn’t as good as GoodFellas, I thought The Business was fast-paced and thoroughly enjoyable – so I am giving this a “Buy” rating.
The Honeybee: It was a fun story, made even better by the 80s soundtrack. Normally I’d say “buy,” too, but today I’ll say “purchase.”
Me: Perfect.
Hey! If you liked this article, please be sure to subscribe to my RSS feed!
Do you have an opinion of the film Bhoothnath? I really liked it when it first came out last summer. Based on what you’ve written here, I think you would like Bhootnath. Cheers!
Never saw it. I’ll have the Honeybee put it on our Netflix queue though! 🙂