Synopsis *********** Raised by their over-bearing mother and aunts, Ronnie and Reggie Kray were soon inducted into a world just on the wrong side of law as they became childhood bullies. With their father being a layabout gambler and their grandfather a former prize boxer, short of a couple of marbles, their only parental guidance came from their mother who taught them to be strong, crafty and conceited. Having progressed from childhood bullies into small time thugs, they intimidated the local neighbourhood with their violence and protection rackets. Soon they gained control of several local clubs and as their legal and illegal dealings grew bigger they ...  Read the complete review

The Kray Twins, Ronnie and Reggie, were, as I'm sure we all know, a couple of violent thugs who ran a badly organised criminal empire in London's East End in the 1960s. For some reason they became well known, getting to hang out with celebrities like Judy Garland, and having their photo taken by David Bailey. After a few years they were arrested and spent the rest of their lives in prison. In spite of various campaigns, neither was released. Ronnie died in 1995, and Reggie just last year. Somehow, the Krays have achieved legendary status in Britain. The whole of Sixties Gangland London exerts a powerful fascination over people today (as witness Mad ...  Read the complete review

RELEASED: 1990, Cert.18 RUNNING TIME: Approx. 115 mins DIRECTOR: Peter Medak PRODUCERS: Dominic Anciano, Jim Beach & Michele Kimche WRITTEN BY: Philip Ridley MAIN CAST:- Martin Kemp as Reggie Kray Gary Kemp as Ronnie Kray Billie Whitelaw as Violet Kray Kate Hardie as Frances ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ NOTE: The information given on the above Amazon link states that this film was made in 1989. My own DVD sleeve shows the release year as 1990, as do many related websites. A couple of years ago I borrowed the 1990 film The Krays on DVD, but was ...  Read the complete review

The Krays is actually one of the better British attempts at film making, and though it's not the perfect film or the best British film, this film does pack a punch and has some great acting and some great action when it comes along. As you'll be able to tell from the title, the Krays is a biopic about Ronnie and Reggie Kray, who were the biggest and perhaps best known gangsters in London during the 60's. It stars twins Martin and Gary Kemp, and has support from Tom Bell, Billie Whitelaw and Steven Berkoff. The film starts with the birth of the two twins in a pretty painful birth scene (a sign of things to come) just before the outbreak of World War 2. We then ...  Read the complete review

The Brits don't have the money like the Americans do when it comes to making gangster flicks -but this isn't necessarily a bad thing. The Krays prefers to concentrate on the domestic lives of the two London-based, organised crime leaders Ronnie and Reggie Kray, rather than making a statement of what is real and what is false in a glamorised manner. Yes, you could argue that making a film about the two notorious East-end criminals is already a form of glamorisation, but the story actually provides very little insight into their involvement with various crime syndicates. Instead of just elaborating on the celebrity status of the twins, it explores ...  Read the complete review