Colin Farrell does a lot of things well, but he plays a gangster extremely well. The current sensation bringing him to audiences hid every aspect of his appearance and still sold him as a superstar. He’s so compelling in The Penguin that viewers must be turning over every stone on every streaming service to find something comparable. London Boulevard doesn’t make that list, but it’s close enough to draw eyes to Paramount+.
London Boulevard is the directorial debut of one William Monahan. His first time writing a Hollywood script was Ridley Scott’s iconic Kingdom of Heaven, and his second was The Departed. That’s like handily winning your first boxing match, then somehow taking home the Olympic gold medal in your second. He did not take to directing as quickly, as both of his projects as director flopped hard. Maybe the third time’s the charm in that field?
Colin Farrell Drags London Boulevard to Paramount+ Success
London Boulevard is a 2010 entry in the English crime thriller genre. They’re a lot like American crime thrillers but usually a bit more bloke-focused. Guy Ritchie probably remains the king of the genre, but there are many other options. The plot follows Farrell as Harry Mitchell, an all-purpose tough guy who can’t walk ten steps without stumbling over a woman in danger. He’s got just enough of a heart of gold to save whoever he finds, leading him to meet Keira Knightley’s Charlotte. She’s a reclusive actress; he’s an overworked criminal. They’re a match made in heaven. There are a lot of characters in this film, dragging Harry and Charlotte on half a dozen side quests that very rarely amount to anything. It feels like Monahan is on autopilot, as if the work of directing the film drained him too much to give his all to the script.
London Boulevard came out in 2010, fighting both the penultimate Harry Potter movie and Tony Scott’s Unstoppable for box-office supremacy. Needless to say, London brought home the bronze. This was before the streaming boom, so the film had to settle for an at-home VOD release before it hit theaters. It brought home $4.6 million on a $12.3 million budget, falling dramatically short despite a modest price tag. The few critics who noticed the film weren’t kind to it. It only has 48 professional reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, offering the film a grim 38% positive score. The over 10,000 audience reviews were even meaner, slapping it with a 30% score. Despite a solid cast and crew, the project simply vanished upon release.
London Boulevard is performing well on Paramount, a streaming service that truly pales in comparison to its competitors. It just doesn’t have a selection that could rival any of the other major outlets. Claiming a position on Paramount’s top ten is far less of an accomplishment than it would be on HBO or Netflix. Still, Colin Farrell’s star is high right now. It’s hard for me to believe people weren’t just looking for another dose of the Oz Cobb actor. If you’re still looking, consider In Bruges or Seven Psychopaths before heading down to London Boulevard.
