Plunkett & Macleane

Starring Jonny Lee Miller, Robert Carlyle, Liv Tyler, Ken Stott, Michael Gambon and Alan Cumming. Written by Selwyn Roberts, Robert Wade, Neal Purvis & Charles McKeown. Directed by Jake Scott.

England in 1748 was not a very pretty place or time, that’s for sure, and in this first piece by Jake Scott, the son of Ridley, it’s readily apparent. Re-teaming two of the outstanding cast-members from Trainspotting, and throwing in Liv Tyler as the love interest for the more attractive of the two was a brilliant idea. Unfortunately the pace is spotty and the dialogue a bit difficult at times. In the end, I even thought the filmmakers may have been attempting to spoof Batman and Robin!

The film starts with the gentlemanly son of a vicar, Captain Macleane (Miller) in prison for some petty crime. Along comes highwayman Plunkett (Carlyle) on the run from the authorities, complete with a buddy Rob in tow (a nice cameo by Iain Robertson, who was marvelous in Small Faces). Plunkett crashes into the prison, demolishing it, but he loses Rob in the process, and a large Ruby, which Rob wisely swallows. Plunkett high-tails it, but Rob is left fatally wounded. Macleane watches on in horror as the sadistic authority figure Chance (Ken Stott) finishes off Rob. Plunkett and Macleane team up after being caught graverobbing and cutting out the Ruby from Rob’s corpse. The two rogues buy their way out of prison and set off to become famous highwaymen.

After this unfortunately LONG prologue, the story really shifts into high gear. Plunkett sets up Macleane as a gentleman, complete with a good address and clothes to boot. Macleane then crashes society parties (with the help of the always wonderful Alan Cumming) and gleans information about the richest of the rich nobles. The two then mask themselves and set about robbing the poor buggers at night. Their notoriety grows, even as Mr. Chance sets about trying to stop them. Liv Tyler fills the eye-candy portion of the bill as a noble-woman wooed by Macleane.

It is this middle section of the film that’s the best part, as the end is all but predictable and paced oddly. Good performances by all the leads can solve the obvious plotting and pacing problems that ultimately drag this period piece into the quagmire of mediocrity. There’s also the problem of the oddly anachronistic soundtrack, that seems more suited to a film like Go than this one.

My rating: ** ½ out of 5.