| | | Sometimes it's hard to say no.
Features: DVD, Dolby Digital (5.1), Spanish, Subtitled, Commentary, Theatrical Version, Trailers
Gal (Ray Winstone) has retired from the gangster life in London, and is sunning himself beside the pool at his villa in Spain when a boulder comes crashing by, barely missing him. Soon, he is being threatened by a human boulder, Don Logan (Ben Kingsley). Logan wants Gal for a high stakes vault break-in back in London and he will not take no for an answer. Nevertheless, that's exactly the answer Gal keeps giving him, even as Don gets more and more threatening.
"Ben Kingsley delivers "his best performance ever" in this high-voltage film that crackles with style and wit.
" Premiere Magazine
"One of the 10 best films of the year!" Los Angeles Times, New York Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, and Rolling Stone
"Ben Kingsley is the most savage, mad-dog, frothing gangster in recent movies.
" Roger Ebert, The Chicago-Sun Times
"A marvelously suspenseful character study wrapped up in a refreshingly tight crime film." Jay Boyar, Orlando Sentinel
"Riveting and sexy." Lou Lumenick, New York Post
"Ben Kingsley is unforgettably menacing as "the anti-Gandhi".
" The New Yorker
"Ben Kingsley deserves an Oscar nomination!" Joel Siegel, Good Morning America
Editor's Note
Jonathan Glazer, the award-winning director of advertisements and music videos, presents his feature film debut with this lushly photographed, expertly written, and brilliantly performed convention-defying British gangster film. SEXY BEAST jettisons the slickness of the LOCK, STOCK, AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS school in favor of intricate character development. In its opening shot, Gary "Gal" Dove (Ray Winstone)--a big-bellied ex-gangster with a cockney accent--is sunning himself pool side at his luxe villa on Spain's Costa Del Sol when a gigantic boulder hurtles down a hillside, almost killing him. This near miss serves as a troublesome portent, but it hardly affects Gal, who is immersed in his tranquil life with wife Deedee (Amanda Redman), who he adores with earnest fervor. However, Gal's peace is soon shattered by the arrival of Don Logan (Ben Kingsley, using his shaved skull, spare frame, and ramrod posture to pose as an anti-Gandhi), a brutal former accomplice looking to recruit Gal for a heist. A battle of wills ensues when Gal refuses to leave retirement, and the frighteningly intense Don refuses to take no for an answer. Glazer expertly heightens the film's tension using shifts in the pacing and flashbacks, while Kingsley and Winstone imbue their characters with gorgeous life.
| Features | Widescreen 1.85:1 (Anamorphic) | | Dolby Digital 5.1 | | Dolby Digital Surround | | Commentary by Ben Kingsley and Producer Jerry Thomas | | Featurette | | Theatrical Trailers |
| Technical Info
|
Release Information
| | Studio: Foxvideo |
| Release Date: 10/22/2002 |
| Running Time: 89 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2001 | | Catalog ID: 2002674 | | UPC: 00024543026747 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English, French Dubbed | | Available Subtitles: French, Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | 1.85:1 |
| Cast & Crew
| Awards |
Oscar (2002) | | | Ben Kingsley, Nominee, Best Supporting Actor | |
Golden Globe (2002) | | | Ben Kingsley, Nominee, Best Supporting Actor |
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| | Professional Reviews | Premiere
"...This is Kingsley's best performance in years, maybe his best ever....SEXY BEAST is a deft, remarkably tight [film]..." 06/01/2001 p.89-91Movieline's Hollywood Life
"...The cast is uniformly excellent....This is a highly imaginative piece of filmmaking -- and one hell of a scary ride..." 06/01/2001 p.39 Film Comment
"...SEXY BEAST sizzles....[The film] constantly surprises, unfolding and reinventing itself in unexpected ways..." 03/01/2001 p.16-7 Rolling Stone
"...It's Kinsley who will fire you up. He's dynamite. Ditto the movie..." 07/05/2001 p.150 USA Today
"...Its casting is so right and its 90-minute pacing so crisp that what emerges is one of the year's few sleepers..." -- 3 1/2 out of 4 stars 06/13/2001 p.4D New York Times
"...[Kingsley's] performance jolts the movie like an exposed high-voltage wire....[Glazer] clearly has a knack for quick visual thinking and a snappy rhythmic sense..." 06/13/2001 p.E1 Los Angeles Times
"...Style that burns....SEXY BEAST also has a strong plot and a pair of excellent performances..." 06/13/2001 p.2 Washington Post 8 of 10
...an engaging conflagration of British B-flick, cockney wit and gallows humor. There's even a delicate little love story in there. It's a gas and a half to spend time with these characters--and the performers who play them... [Kingsley] makes it his personal business to be the nastiest villain in recent memory. He's disconcertingly successful... - Desson Howe
The New York Times 8 of 10
...[the director] clearly has a knack for quick visual thinking and a snappy rhythmic sense... Mr. Kingsley's explosive turn--which might overshadow the quieter work of Mr. Winstone, Ms. Redman and Mr. Kendall--instead heightens your sense of their characters' vulnerable humanity... Sexy Beast delivers not only sensation but also, more remarkably, feeling. - A.O. Scott
Chicago Sun-Times 8 of 10
Kingsley's performance has to be seen to be believed. He's angry, seductive, annoyed, wheedling, fed up, ominous and out of his mind with frustration. I didn't know Kingsley had such notes inside him. Obviously, he can play anyone... - Roger Ebert
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