The Long Good Friday

Ostensibly, the Long Good Friday is about a London crime lord facing a series of unfortunate killings just as he was about to start his completely legal new business venture. Already the story works, since the question of who’s behind these assassinations drives the mystery of the story. It also helps that the crime lord is played by Bob Hoskin, who delivers an outstanding performance. However, this gangster drama works better with the historical context. On top of the usual corruption that allows organized crime to flourish, Harold Shand’s upcoming partnership with an American investor reflects the real life alliance between their two countries, while the manner in which he loses some men (and the title) echoes the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The Long Good Friday brilliantly combines both to examine Britain’s place in the world.

In the late 1970s, Cockney crime boss Harold Shand, a gangster trying to become a legitimate property mogul, has big plans to get the American Mafia to bankroll his transformation of a derelict area of London into the possible venue for a future Olympic Games. However, a series of bombings targets his empire on the very weekend the Americans are in town. Shand is convinced there is a traitor in his organization, and sets out to eliminate the rat in typically ruthless fashion.