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I’ve just got in from watching Legend. It’s 11 in the PM and I am pumped. I’m amped… and a little scared of the criminal underworld. I’m also very, very intimidated; but this is okay, because it’s the acting ability of one Tom Hardy which is making me feel oh so inadequate.

 

It should come as no surprise that Tom Hardy plays both major roles in ‘Legend’, Ronald and Reginald Kray; with a pair of specs, some false teeth and a prosthetic nose he is transformed from smooth street fighter Reg into the violent psychopathic Ron. You might think that’s a harsh description, but after seeing this film I’m sure you’ll be inclined to agree.

 

In terms of how each character is developed it is clear that Ron and Reg represent opposite sides of a gangster coin, Reggie is the charming and friendly businessman (or so the film leads us to believe); offering the policemen perpetually tailing him a cup of tea in the morning we see Reggie as a confident and rather cocky chap. This radically opposes his twin brother Ron. Ron is a very different animal to his brother, declared insane after a transfer from prison to a mental hospital, living in a caravan in the woods, then demanding a ‘shoot out, with guns. Like a western’ in a bar fight. Where Reg lives for the money, Ron lives for the violence, and I hate to say it, but I don’t feel the film captures this. Now I don’t want to put this film down, because I loved it. I thought it was fantastic, and cast perfectly.

 

Emily Browning (who some might recognise from ‘Sucker Punch’ or ‘A Series of Unfortunate Events’) plays the fragile and curious Frances perfectly; similarly the entirety of the Kray’s crew play gangsters bloody well. My issue lies with the romanticism portrayed about the gangster lifestyle. The fact of the matter is that the Kray twins were pretty nasty blokes. Of course nasty blokes can be charming and charismatic and fall in love, but what I’m suggesting is that the film takes this rather too lightly, but, and this is a big but, I think this sort of thought detracts from the film, because obviously any film about any questionable character is romanticised to a point in order to appeal to any audience. Take Tom Hardy’s role as Britain’s most violent prisoner Charles Bronson for example (another fantastic film…).

 

What Legend really shows is the versatility of an actor, and the meticulous way in which a film can be shot. Consider that every scene where both brothers are in shot must be filmed twice and then spliced together. Ron can look Reg in the eye and have a conversation. That just blows my mind. And the team behind the scenes did a fantastic job of this, especially in fight scenes between the twins. It isn’t often that you see a film so well written, so well acted, and so tightly pulled together. Legend is a very special film. 

 

Despite a questionable premise, and some very questionable acts Tom Hardy somehow makes the Kray’s almost likable, and amazingly makes the police officer hunting them look a villain. This, to me, shows how powerful an acting force Hardy is, and how varied he can be as an actor. Just look at his last few films, Mad Max, The Drop, Locke, Lawless, The Dark Knight Rises, the list goes on. Tom Hardy has Hollywood in the palm of his hand… and I can’t wait to see where he goes next.