Customer Reviews

Love Honor & Obey [VHS]

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Love, Honour and Obey is a hilarious story of the North-versus-South London gangwars. Full of karaoke, Elvis Suits, and sexual mishaps to keep you laughing. With a great cast (including Jude Law!) attempting to be tough, and Jonny Lee Miller in a clown suit you will be rather amused throughout the film.

What more can I say? One of the best films I have ever seen! I've watched this film about 50 times and I'll never get sick of it! This London Gangster film is riddled with hillarious one liners - although I think you need to be savvy with British humour to appreciate them. Not forgetting a very good story line, and some excellent directing. Watch out for 'Fat Allan'. His hands are like a deadly weapon, he is both feared and reviered. Quality!!!!!

What happens when mobsters and hit men sing karaoke? That is exactly what you will find out in Love, Honour And Obey. Jonny Lee Miller plays Jonny, a guy with a boring job and a boring life. Jude Law plays Jude, Jonny's best friend and the nephew of local crime boss Ray, Ray Winstone. Jonny has a brilliant idea, he and Jude have been best friends since childhood, so he sould be allowed to join the family business. Ray agrees and tells Jude to watch Jonny. What ensues is a torrent of events involving Rhys Ifans, a member of another local crime family. Jonny makes it his goal to drive Matthew (Ifans) crazy, by messing up his car, killing his men, and all of this is done under the protection of Ray. This all works out well for Jonny because he does things to get in Rays good graces. Then Ray finds out that Jonny is playing games he shouldnt be, and things get ugly. The movie has very comedic moments, including scenes in Ray club where almost all of the characters perform karoake numbers, which arent badly sung. Some other memorable characters, are Kathy (Kathy Burke) who plays the wife of one of Rays henchmen (Ray Burdis). Kathy and Ray are having marital problems because Ray can't get it up. Dominic, the other henchman, tries to help by giving him advice. The advice includes things such as surprising Kathy by dressing in kinky leather ensembles and waiting for her to come home. The outcome of these advised coups are very amusing. Sadie Frost, Jude Laws real life wife, plays Sadie, Ray Winstones fiance. She wants to get married, but you can imagine how hard it is to convince a crime boss to tie the knot, especially when he is convinced that you are strapping it on with the director of your TV series. This movie is a must for anyone who is interested in British comedy or if you just need an escape the usual droll that Hollywood schocks out.

I've seen this film ten times and I will watch it again and again. This movie is pure brilliance, the very original concept of gangsters putting the Karaoke before business, the humour, and yes the violence all come together to make this film, for me, stand out from all the same old same old being rolled off the Hollywood production line. It is British at its best and wackiest, like all the main actors using their own first names. However, what I will say is that I don't think it would be appreciated across the pond because I just don't think they will 'get it'. To sum up IT'S MONTY PYPHON MEETS THE GODFATHER DOWN THE GREEN MAN FOR A GOOD OLD SING-SONG.

This is one funny movie.The characters are likeable in a nice gritty way.Comparisons? Try Abbbot & Costello-a "Carry-On..." movie and then toss in the 'Long Good Friday" (Yes, I know, it's supposed to joggle your memory, but it's a pretty accurate mix! No?) The gunman who has a problem "shooting... ha ha ha. and toss in the "Raise Bayonetts!" command in the shootout scene .... hilarious. In 98 mins. this movie does what has taken the Sopranos to do in what, two seasons. And this is funnier. Comparison to Lock-Stock... doesn't do this movie justification. And I LIKE Lock-Stock, but this is just plain abso-fan-@#$#$ing-lutely better!

Y'knowhatimean?

And Snatch, Lock-Stock's follow up by way of Fight Club, doesn't come close... no likeable characters there at all.

Back to this movie (LH&O) though, its Karaoke scenes are funny, Fireball XL-5, in particular, especially if you've ever seen it or other supermariovision programs.

nice!

This Film is a Rare Treat, I don't think I've ever seen anything like it. You can just tell the cast are having as much fun as the audience. Being that nearly all the dialogue is Adlibbed, and the Cast have all worked together before, the Outcome is a really well put-together - Classic Cockney Crime Caper. The "Fix Bayonett's" Scene is a classic example of the fun nature of the film, and one of the funniest scenes I've seen in a long time. The Cast are the Best Britain has to Offer. Jude Law, Jonny Lee Miller, Ray Winstone, it doesn't Get Much Better. If I was Brad Pitt, I'd have jumped aboard this Brilliant feature instead of the Guy Ritchie's "Snatch" which is bot up to Scratch when compared to "Love, Honour and Obey".

Bottom line, if you're just a Jude Law fan as many have mentioned, you will not enjoy this movie. This movie is for lovers of British cinema, whether it be blockbuster or independent. I'm a big fan of Britain and I was lucky enough to understand not only the jokes, but the history behind them that lend itself to the hilarity of it all. Rhys Ifans as the thugged out Welshman (not true for all Welsh) in the scene with the firebomb screaming his insults, only the British and their legions can truly know how funny that is. The entire North vs. South London theme was pretty funny, too. It goes to show that the British have a great sense humor regarding their bulldog spirit. A+ film. Not one for this side of the pond.

This movie is an intiguing look into the goings on of London organised crime. The violence is on a level with The Krays but the movie is more realistic, as it shows the sometimes incompetant and often unneccesary actions of the central figures. Love, Honour & Obey was shot mainly without a script, which further adds to the documentry style, true to life feeling and means the actors use their own names. This is a great movie for anyone who is a fan of life like, gritty, and sometimes stomach churning ganster movies. This is definately not a glossy Casino-esq flick, perhaps that's better?

This film is fantastic and no doubt will gain cult status! Think "Operation Good Guys" the BBC mock cop documentary meets Guy Ritchie's "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels". It really is a laugh a scene with British humour at its best. The entire cast are fabulous and look like they thoroughly enjoyed making the film. I have watched it three times now and will probably watch it again by the end of the week, I can't get enough!

Love, Honor & Obey is about a guy named Jonny (Jonny Lee Miller) whose best childhood friend, Jude (Jude Law), grew up to become an important gangster while he himself wound up stuck in a dead end job delivering parcels. Naturally, he wants in the gang and after persuading both Jude and Jude's gang boss uncle (Ray Winstone), he becomes a member of the gang. During a series of actions, Jonny rises in the estimation of both the gang boss and his fellow gangsters.

However, this success is not enough for Jonny. He becomes quickly bored with what he sees as a gang that operates like a criminal business and wants a war. He obsessively watches war movies and discusses the Falklands War of 1982 with Jude. With Jude's help, he both kills a pair of mobsters with another gang and steals their cocaine. This ignites a war between the 2 gangs. Only problem is that neither gang can shoot straight, resulting in great comedy mixed in with the sordid gangster lifestyle.

That is the main plot/narrative of Love, Honor & Obey. This part of the script is very well written, acted and executed. If the whole movie was this good, then Love, Honor & Obey would have been a great movie. The problem is that the rest of the movie fails to measure up to this standard.

There are various subplots that never really get anywhere. For example, the gang leader chases out with a TV actress and scandalizes his mother in the process. Another subplot is that one of his hitmen is attempting to raise a family while simultaneously trafficking in cocaine. Had the time spent on these pointless subplots been spent on fleshing out the main narrative, then Love, Honor & Obey would have been a much better movie.

There are also a number of scenes in the movie that have nothing to do with anything else that's going on and which are never returned to. For example, some gangsters dress as Arabs and do a lot of talking about Viagra for no apparent reason. There is a scene involving talking like Italians. In one scene, Jude Law masquerades as a Mexican pimp for no apparent reason at all. There is another scene that involves guys dressing as women for no apparent reason at all. Characters have conversations about nothing that has anything to do with anything else going on in the movie. These interludes are pointless and a complete waste of time.

One interesting innovation in Love, Honor & Obey is the use of musical numbers to introduce the scenes that mark turning points in the movie. The best of these is Jonny Lee Miller's song about why guys like him become gangsters. The opening song involving many of the cast members that's about the gangland lifestyle is pretty good too. However, not all of these musical interludes are well executed and at least one of them is cleary actors lip synching instead of actually singing.

Love, Honor & Obey is a missed opportunity. More to the point, it is really 2 movies in 1. On the one hand, you have a great 45 minute main plot/narrative focused on Jonny's gangster life and the war between the gangs. One the other hand, you have about 45 minutes of more or less irrelevant filler that does nothing to advance the movie or make it interesting. Add it all up and what you get is an average grade crime flick. This is a shame since it had the potential to be a masterpiece.