Lucky Number Slevin

Director: Paul McGuigan

Starring: Josh Hartnett, Bruce Willis, Lucy Liu, Morgan Freeman, Ben Kingsley

His respectable history of grisly revenge moments is reason enough to catch Paul McGuigan’s hottest new film. Full of plot twists, cool characters, hot actors and dazzling cinematography, Lucky Number Slevin can not fail to deliver to even the most demanding of crime-thriller fans. This is a mix between The Sting and The Usual Suspects.

The film revolves around Slevin (Hartnett) who innocently goes to visit his friend Nick in New York. Once there, however, he finds Nick’s flat mysteriously deserted. The unassuming Slevin is troubled when Nick’s neighbour (Liu) expresses concerns over Nick’s safety and whereabouts. When he enters this neighbour’s flat he met by a fistful of angry mob henchman and these henchman believe Slevin to be Nick. It is at this point that is clear that Nick isn’t the only one in trouble. Met by the bosses of two rival gangs, The Rabbi (Kingsley) and The Boss (Freeman) who both believe him to be Nick, Slevin is caught between two very bad situations. They both inform him that he (assumed to be Nick) owes them money – and payback has a price. The Boss wants The Rabbi’s son dead. In killing him, all debts will be waved. In the meantime, The Rabbi wants his $33K back. Slevin is desperate to prove his own identity but with his wallet stolen, this proves to be impossible. With time running out and a complex plot to assassinate one of the city's most powerful crime bosses slowly coming into focus, the arrival of a notorious hit-man named Mr. Goodkat (Bruce Willis) forces Slevin to step up his desperate search and reclaim his identity before he's forced to pay a debt that could cost him his life.

Fast-paced, witty and violent, Lucky Number Slevin is a smart thriller that accomplishes everything it sets out to. Hartnett proves to be a fine leading man, capable of delivering witty one-liners and being suitably menacing. The film could be considered to be slightly out of its depth in terms of plot, but the elaborateness of the different story lines fits well into the film’s fast-paced nature. Exciting and exhilarating, this is the must see stylish thriller of 2006.

Victoria Galloway