After only recently pondering the prospects for screenwriter Rowan Joffe‘s adaptation of Graham Greene‘s classic underworld thriller “Brighton Rock,” the first trailer for the film has now been unveiled in preparation for its upcoming theatrical release in the U.K. and recent premieres at the London and Toronto Film Festivals.
With a strong cast boasting rising thespians Sam Riley and Andrea Riseborough starring alongside accomplished veterans Helen Mirren and John Hurt, iconic source material and a proven writer at the helm, everything seemed in place for an exciting piece of work. However, ever since its unveiling during the fall festival seasons, we’ve heard nothing but bad things personified by a reader comment in our latest story about the film that simply read “it’s an abomination.”
The trailer doesn’t exactly paint the picture of a disaster of that magnitude other than with a few overcooked lines, and the crafty 1960’s England setting looks pretty nice. The story is of an up-and-coming gangster (Riley) who marries a naive waitress (Riseborough) after she stumbles onto evidence linking him to a murder, while an older couple (Mirren, Hurt) try to save the waitress from her marriage.
Reviews, though, had noted problems with “pacing, plotting, and thematic convictions” as well as “self-conscious (and technically over-egged) noir stylings [that] bristle against a clearly overworked script that fidgets to no effect with Greene’s plotting, with a cast that never coalesces floating somewhere amid the wreckage.”
It could be a while before most audiences can witness what Joffe has created for themselves but: “Brighton Rock” hits U.K. theaters on February 4th and doesn’t, as of yet, have U.S. distribution.
