And enjoy it I did. I'll say up front that The Limey is not for everyone. If, for example, you're the type of person who requires pedantically linear story-telling, do yourself a favor and skip it. It's jumpy and disjointed, like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle scattered all over the place. But those pieces click into place so neatly it makes you grin at the sheer cleverness of it, as in the last few minutes you realize the significance of a dozen seemingly random lines and shots throughout the movie. In fact, I found myself smiling a lot during the film, just from the pleasure of seeing a smart, bold, spirited movie. (God bless Random Hearts if it primed me to get even more pleasure out of seeing The Limey.)
The film's a treasure chest of fine performances, too, starting with gimlet-eyed Terence Stamp as the titular Brit who comes to Los Angeles to avenge his daughter's death, caused, he suspects, by her lover, a giddy and fun Peter Fonda (playing, in a real stretch, a guy who got rich off of sixties counter-culture). Stamp is terrific, and there's one scene in particular where he exchanges (sort of) information with a DEA agent that's probably the funniest deadpan comedy I've seen this year. The supporting actors are all good; many of them seem to deserve a movie unto themselves. Leading this column is Nicky Katt as a surprisingly philosophical scumbag -- he's hilarious and unfortunately on screen for far too little time.
After this and last year's Out of Sight, Steven Soderbergh has really impressed the hell out of me. The Limey isn't flawless (there are plot points that could use a little clarifying, like why the dead daughter's acquaintances are so eager to help her father), but it's clever and fun. It's relatively short (about 90 minutes), but it feels even shorter -- it's so fast-paced and tightly constructed. Though they're vastly different in style, it reminds me somehow of a narrowly focused, character-driven noir film like The Killers. So, if you're up for something a little different, maybe even a little challenging, I give this one a thumbs up.
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