The Criminal - Wen die Schuld trifft (1999) Online

The little-known and underrated Steven Mackintosh stars in this ambitious and complex British thriller which keeps you right on the edge of your seat until the end.

Sadly, the end is a little bit disappointing but when you watch this endlessly twisting conspiracy story you'll soon come to realise that it is just too clever for its own good. And while that's not exactly a compliment, at least this low budget attempt at North by Northwest proves first-time writer/director Julian Simpson is not given to compromise.

The story begins late at night in a Soho bar where unassuming thirtysomething musician Jasper (Mackintosh) is drinking alone until he's joined by stunning blonde, Sarah, played by Natasha Little. She seems very keen to go back to his place, crack open a bottle of vodka and spend the night doing whatever two broad-minded and drunk adults like to do. But at 2am there's a knock at the door and suddenly the pace of The Criminal picks up as Jasper gets a smack in the face and wakes up to find the blonde had been slashed to ribbons and he is the number one murder suspect.

Up steps Bernard Hill as a hard-bitten copper who effs and blinds his way confidently through some fairly ropey dialogue. Unable to come up with substantive evidence, he lets Jasper back on the street (pursued by bumbling police, naturally) and our hero immediately begins to unravel the very murky story behind the murder. Be prepared to pay attention very closely from this point onwards because The Criminal is not a movie for those suffering post-MTV attention deficit disorder.

Mackintosh, whose character probably seemed pretty flat on paper, is onscreen almost constantly and thankfully he's up to the job, rescuing what might otherwise be a celluloid disaster. You might not know his name, but if you've seen Lock Stock, Blue Juice or The Buddha of Suburbia, you'll know the face. There's a good role for Soldier Soldier star Holly Aird as Hill's sidekick but unwarranted top billing goes to stand-up comic Eddie Izzard, who pops up fairly unconvincingly for about ten minutes of screen time in a role that's perhaps a little too vital for someone so inexperienced. Comedy lovers should also watch out for Red Dwarf co-star Norman Lovett in a very brief cameo.

Pick it apart and The Criminal doesn't hold much water. But despite its faults (of which there are a fair few) you are going to find it very hard to switch off without finding out what happens in the end.

Okay, it may not have the budget of Enemy of the State, but Julian Simpson's first film was undeniably enjoyable nonetheless. The Criminal, withstanding a few minor glitches, is one of the most likeable British films I've seen in ages. I must admit that I am slightly biased as I love conspiracy films but this had all the right ingredients: the innocent everyman hero on the run, spies, femme fatales, plot twists etc. It occasionally felt as if some scenes could've been cut to quicken the pace, but as it is it's still very entertaining.

Bernard Hill, the Captain from Titanic, was brilliant as the foul-mouthed bad-tempered policeman, and Steven Mackintosh was believable as the everyman hero, without resulting to cliche's. The rest of the cast was made up with faces from TV, but this didn't matter as they were all great.

I saw the Criminal on Palm Pictures VOD and i must say, while at first I was skeptical, I thought it was a fantastic movie that unwounded perfectly with many twists and turns along the way. Each scene gets better and better and the story only gets more confusing but in a way that works towards its advantage rather than the opposite. Once the movie ended, I was just stunned, in almost awe of the film I saw, for everything will come unraveling at the end and doing so in a fantastic way to boot.

The acting I admit was a bit mediocre. The main character was decent, but his acting wasn't award worthy by any standard. The other cops do an okay job as well, with the male police officer being the best, but overall this won't win any awards for acting (note to director: the American girl was awful! She shouldn't be allowed to act ever again!). However, what really wins over is the plot. It does a good job revealing little hints throughout the movie e.g. Usual Suspects to provide the viewer with a grasp of what's going on. But viewer be warned, when you think you know it all, you'll be in for a real surprise. Believe me, i thought this movie was going to be a real cookie cutter noir film. It's much more than that, you just have to be patient with it.

Is The Criminal the film of the decade? Probably not. But it's one hell of a ride. After thirty minutes in you'll be so immersed in the story you might forget all about the mediocre acting. With a great plot, intense action, and unbelievable suspense, The Criminal is one of those surprise films that should get recognized more in the states but probably won't. It's definitely more refreshing than the usual Michael Bay garbage we're used to here.

'The Criminal' is an overlooked gem that I hadn't heard of prior to it showing up on cable. It captures classic noir in a modern framework with all the appropriate darkness and unsympathetic characters. The British have a knack for such crime drama, and I cringed throughout imagining what the Hollywood version would be like. (I'm surprised filming hasn't already begun.) The cast is brilliant from the top to the bottom of the credits, and the lead, Steven Mackintosh, is particularly outstanding as the trapped innocent attempting to piece together what he's fallen into. When it comes time to pull together the plot elements, writer/director Simpson makes a long stretch and comes up with something outrageous and a bit too easy, and some of the concluding twists feel somewhat contrived, but by this time, it really doesn't matter. The film's fast pace, great acting, and dark cinematography have already succeeded in making it a thoroughly entertaining noir.

This film lacked the basics; tension, atmosphere and a half decent script. It didnt work. It didnt know what it was. It ended up being Farce. Keystone cops, 'U' certificate violence, dodgy flashbacks, Bethnal Green Town-hall;(When do you ever get an oak panelled cop shop?) I can only think that the American actress playing the street-wise urchin, (taking the film to an even more embarassing depth), was only there because a relation of hers put money into the project! Whats sad is its got such a good cast. Oh what could have been done with them and the budget! It makes 'Honest' look like a masterpiece. They'd probabley make a good double-bill!!

The Criminal is undeniable proof of the adverse affect that Pulp Fiction has had on cinema. The title of the movie is actually ironic, as the movie itself is no better than a common criminal. After paying money to see it, you'll see why. Basically, The Criminal is a huge waste of 90 minutes. I can think of multiple better things to do in 90 minutes than watch this movie, one of them involving your own toenails and a pair of rusty pliers. After seeing the film, I doubt that you will disagree. It is with that in mind that I say; don't bother with this movie. The premise of The Criminal is actually quite intriguing, and you'll be forgiven for thinking that the film is worth watching for that reason. After the first ten minutes, you'll think that you've made the right choice in deciding to see the movie. You're wrong, but you won't know it yet. The movie opens with a man chatting to a woman in a bar. After hearing his speech about dance music being rubbish, you'll be utterly convinced that you're in the right film, but you're not. The man and woman, after some banter, go back to his apartment. Events transpire, and she ends up dead. Shock, horror! Indeed, as it's down, down, deeper and down from then on. And just to clarify; I don't mean 'down' as in 'down into Britain's criminal underworld', unfortunately.

Steven Mackintosh takes the lead in this film. You'll almost certainly recognise this man from one of Britain's good crime films; Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. The character that Steve plays here is, in fact, only a certain plant away from being the same character that he played in Lock, Stock; namely, a wimp who happens to be in a world of criminals. The rest of the cast isn't noteworthy, with the exception of the police inspector. He isn't noteworthy for anything but swearing a lot, however. He swears and he swears and then he swears some more. That's all he does, and it gets beyond a joke after the third or fourth swear word. It's a blatantly obvious attempt to cash in on the childish 'coolness' of profanity.

Pulp Fiction's influence can be seen all too often through this film; but what The Criminal doesn't realize is that just because it worked for Pulp Fiction, doesn't mean it will work here. At times, the film works in flashback sequences that just pop up from nowhere, it sometimes uses cool dialogue to convey it's points, and sometimes puts stuff in just for the sake of having it there; and all in all, it's extremely annoying. That's all this film is really; annoying. Annoying, boring and unoriginal sums it up perfectly, and it is, with no fear of a lie, one of the worst movies of recent years. Maybe even of all time

This film is really just something to watch when you are bored. It's by no means the worst film on the world, but it could have been so much better.

There are some funny moments, and parts where you do wonder just what the hells going on. You can decide for yourself whether that is a good thing or a bad thing.

I did enjoy the beginning, the way it kind of gave you a false sense of security; how it gave you the impression that the film might be something that was completely different from what it turned out to be. But it did go down hill from there on end.

Oh dear, British films, what happened? I saw this little slab of nastiness just under a year ago (Oct 99) and it still isn't out today (Oct 00) - and really it is no surprise. Debuting at the London Film Festival to lukewarm response, The Criminal appears to be a hark back to the dark days of late fifties Brit crim flicks where everyone got in too deep for their own good and co-incidentally came across a superfluous American character to help the thing get distributed in the US. Only this boy's been watching too many Brit gangster films. Although a cinematographically a worthy first pop by the debut director, the story is a seen-it-all-before-with-bells-on stab at a conspiracy theory movie with one minor exception...whereas you'll normally side with the beleagured protagonist in this genre, ten minutes in and you really stop caring what happens to the unsympathetic little git. For most people, the chance to see Eddie Izzard in a straight role will be the main bait, but even he's dead ropy in it, and all in all this spiteful little drain on a couple of hours of your life really isn't worth missing the soaps for. Be warned - if the police are stationed in a building that plush and majestic there really must be something dodgy going on.

This film steps out of nowhere and throws its weight around to such an extent you'd think the budget was several $''000,000's greater. Confident direction and cinematography that is fantastically arresting combined a smart edit and well planned sound design, score and soundtrack - the sort of thing new directors often overlook. The performances show actors who really turned up every day ready to work and be worked - nobody coasts through this. Steve Mackintosh captures the boastful and irritatingly mouthy Jasper's descent into friendless paranoia really well with an expression that reads as if he can't for the life of him remember who he might have upset recently. Bernard Hill mows down all before him, riding roughshod over any suspicions or hunches his cop partner, played by Holly Aird may have and giving explosively short shrift to a forensic scientist played by Eddie Izzard.

cinematography starts out excellent, actors talented but do not bother with this film. I love Eddie Izzard and Steven MacIntosh; all the other actors were excellent but this was a hateful script, which tortures viewers. We readily identify with MackIntosh's & Natasha Little's characters, so evil done to them is spikes driven into our eyeballs. Not since "Clockwork Orange" have I hated a film so intensely and I admit that Clockwork had redeeming values, art-wise & social commentary-wise. "The Criminal" was a lame excuse for someone who is de-sensitized to violence (whether by video games or limbic system dysfunction) to slam viewers' heads down onto a table. I put it on fast fwd after 20 minutes into the film and made stops to catch up with dialogue, skipping violence. Thus, for me, the film was thankfully 45 minutes long. Despised the ending. Let it be known that my favorite writer is Dostoyevsky. So I'm not a suburban granny making whiny comments. I can handle intensity/violence if the plot is worthwhile & characters get to develop (I have to hand it to MackIntosh, his work in this was, as usual, top notch). My favorite movies are "Dr. Zhivago" and "Gangs of NY" (and I recently appreciated "In Bruges") These films do not spare the viewers' sensibilities, with Cossaks slaughtering innocents and Bill Cutting's vengeful personality. Please DO see Anything else that these talented actors have done & best wishes to the script writer. Director, you've got talent but get out of this genre, it's old hat.

I'd like to be kind as this was the director's first film. The trouble is there just isn't anything particularly good to say about it.

Well, I'll take that back just a little. The beginning looks good, the musician picking up a gal, and then her getting murdered. But that's about it. From there on, it's a downhill slide of contrived complications, red herrings, swearing inspectors. The swearing in this film was something else again like the British are trying to prove that they can be as foul mouthed as Americans.

I won't urge you to skip this. You might have reasons of your own to see it and if you do, all I can say is good luck.

i think naf' said about gangster films in england.. but this is "the movie" it's amazing! it's kinda like a mix between guy richie and david lynch just without the bulls**t! it's a really brilliant! when u'll think u finally getting it.. even at the end... you'll than see once again that you wrong and this movie is even brilliant than you thought it is.. that this movie is one of the best movies i've ever saw.. i liked snatch and lsn2sb a lot! i gave them both 9 or 10.. but this one is da' best i saw in the genre

For a first movie by the young director one can only say "great" even if he were an old hand it would still be a great thriller and one that keeps you on the edge of your seat. I loved the camera work and the ideas in telling the story. Gritty with some fine acting, a very British movie without all the usual gloss and fancy fashions! Highly recommended.

The Criminal is a suspense/thriller that unfortunately lacks much of either. It starts out well enough, with a guy named Jasper picking up a girl in a bar and bringing her home. A man bursts into his house and murders the girl. Jasper is on the run from the police as he tries to prove his innocence and find who the real killer is. The problem is that this has been so many times and this time it is only so-so. Acting is OK, except from the American girl who is just awful. Good opening, but everything just goes down from there and it gets to the point where it just isn't that engaging. Everything is just average. Not embarrassing, but not really worth watching. ** out of ****

Beware all the positive reviews. Reading that this film bears any resemblance to a Guy Ritchie film made me cringe.

"Contrived" never described a film as perfectly as it does this one.

From laughable bad-cop antics, to pointless paranoid schizophrenics and finally to an brief and amateurish handling of serious political issues, "The Criminal" promises to fail to engage the mind of the sophisticated movie-watcher.

That said, "The Criminal" isn't terrible. For the most part, the acting is better than average, and there certainly isn't a lack of action. However the writing and directing are marginal at best. 4 out of 10.

"The Criminal" is a noirish Brit crime flick which tells of a man (Mackintosh) who is in the wrong place at the wrong time and finds himself as a murder suspect on the run from the police and a bunch of super secret underground heavies. A busy flick with little to offer save a bunch of running around, "The Criminal" suffers from low budgetness, a thin plot, lots of filler, and an awful ending. An okay time waster for the couch potato who can't find anything better. (+D)

I paid to see this film and I stayed until the end...in retrospect the two largest mistakes of the day. A roller coaster ride between wishing it would end and wishing I had something better to do at two-thirty in the morning. An absolutely terrible British film...nearly as bad as Rancid Aluminium.