Dom Hemingway (2013) Directed by Richard Shepard

Totally understand and see why some people may not like and understand this movie. I'm not even sure that I really fully get it but I did in fact enjoyed the viewing experience.

I strongly believe that the fact of wetter or not you are going to like this movie stands or falls with your liking or disliking of the main character of the movie, even more so than usual is the case for any other given movie. He's a despicable, foul mouthed, character so it's actually very easy to dislike him and therefor dislike everything else in the movie as well. However, you can also take the movie as a character study and movies about dark. bad boy, type of characters are of course often far more interesting and fun to watch.

It's a movie that ultimately shows that some people just won't- and can't change, even though the movie itself is never all that clear on this message, or any other messages for that matter. I liked how every time it seemed like the main character was going to redeem himself and become a 'better' person he fell back into his old habits again, which constantly reminds you of why he is the way he is. I really did enjoy the movie on that level and it was the one main thing that made it an interesting one to watch for me.

I have still yet to see a Richard Shepard movie that I absolutely love though. His movies usually are some good ones but they are always missing a certain something to turn them into truly great and fully effective movies. It's hard to put my finger on but the way his movies usually progress and the stories and characters develop...I don't know, something is always off about it. This movie as well progresses in a far from typical and streamlined fashion. There isn't a clear beginning, middle and end in it so to speak and it often feels very random with its settings and different plot lines. The one moment the movie is about one thing, the next it's about a totally different thing again, set at a totally different place and even country at times. Maybe that's also one of the reasons why some people don't like watching this movie. The movie as a whole does tend to feel a bit pointless and needlessly confusing at times, since it's lacking a clear point and the movie isn't necessarily always following a main storyline. It also often feels all over the place with some of its themes; the one moment the movie is shocking, the next it's comedic, the next it's disgusting and than it suddenly is a warm and touching movie. It's not easy to label this movie but that isn't always necessarily a bad thing as well. It can mean that a movie is just too unique and doing too much original and surprising on its own to be put into just one category but the movie itself still works out as a great and intriguing one, as also is the case for this movie as well.

In lots of ways this movie actually reminded me of some tough, '70's, guy flicks, that just follows its main characters around, while they are doing absolutely nothing but being a bad ass, who think that they are invincible and that they can get away with just about everything. Ordinary laws and moral ethics don't apply to these characters, other than their own personal codes, that they live by.

It also has a typical British gangster style and atmosphere to it, made famous by directors such as Guy Ritchie. But really, this is far from a Guy Ritchie type of movie though. It really, above all things, is its own thing and it's a simple but absolute fact that you are either going to like what this movie is doing, or you are strongly going to dislike it, like plenty of people are already doing.

But I still think that most people can agree on it that Jude Law is giving a great performance. It's not the typical Jude Law role or character and he's almost unrecognizable at times, not just because of his look but more so due to his acting and the way his character often behaves and reacts to certain situations. It's a great character in my opinion, though again, some people may strongly dislike him. I also really enjoyed Richard E. Grant's performance, who injects some even more fun and wittiness into the movie.

Not a movie for everyone but I personally really liked it.

7/10

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