Legend (2015 film)

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Legend
Legend 2015 poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Brian Helgeland
Produced by
Screenplay by Brian Helgeland
Based on The Profession of Violence 
by John Pearson
Starring
Music by Carter Burwell
Cinematography Dick Pope
Edited by Peter McNulty
Production
companies
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release dates
  • 9 September 2015 (2015-09-09) (United Kingdom)
Running time
131 minutes[1][2]
Country United Kingdom
Language English
Budget $25 million[3]
Box office $28.9 million[4]

Legend is a British crime thriller[5] film written and directed by Brian Helgeland. The film is based on the book The Profession of Violence: The Rise and Fall of the Kray Twins by John Pearson,[6][7] which deals with the rise and fall of the Kray twins; the relationship that bound them together, and charts their gruesome career to their downfall and imprisonment for life in 1969.[8][9]

This is the fifth feature film directed by Helgeland. Tom Hardy, Emily Browning and Christopher Eccleston star with Paul Bettany, Colin Morgan, David Thewlis, Tara Fitzgerald, and Taron Egerton featured in supporting roles.

Plot[edit]

The film focuses on the life of Reggie Kray as he seeks to control the psychotic tendencies of his twin, Ronald Kray.[10]

Cast[edit]

Twins Ronald and Reginald Kray who terrorised London during the 1950s and 1960s.[12]
The wife of Reggie Kray. She met Kray at 16 and wed him aged 22 in 1965. She committed suicide in 1967, and narrates the film from beyond the grave.[15]
A Detective Superintendent in charge of taking down the Krays.[16]
A psychopathic gay man rumoured to have had affairs with Ronnie.[18]
Charlie and his brother Eddie were childhood friends of the Krays and the leaders of notorious south London gang (also known as the Torture Gang), which had a feud and war with the Krays' gang 'The Firm' during the 1960s.
Reggie's driver at the Kray Firm, and older brother of Frances (unlike Reggie, who's the identical twin brother of Ronnie). Described as a "young and very good-looking man."[20][21]
The Krays' business manager. Considered himself a cultured man and he was sickened by the twins' violence.[22][23]
The head of the Philadelphia crime family and friend and business associate to Ronnie and Reggie.[24]
A fashion photographer in the early 1960s.[26]
The gofer of Ronnie and Reggie Kray, and Reggie's chief lieutenant.[27]

Production[edit]

Development[edit]

On 12 October 2013, it was announced that Brian Helgeland had written a script and would be directing a film focusing on the life of Reggie Kray who, with identical brother Ronald, formed the notorious Kray twins. Helgeland said the film would concentrate on Reggie's attempts to control the psychopathic tendencies of his older twin.

Helgeland spoke of hanging out in London with well-known Krays associate Freddie Foreman, saying, "I had drinks with him in his local haunt. When we finished he got up to go and they feted him at the bar. I said to him, 'what about the bill?' and he replied, 'we don't pay." [28]

Helgeland attended the Cannes Film Festival with Working Title's Tim Bevan and Chris Clark to talk to potential buyers of the film and showing test footage of Hardy playing the twins.[29][30]

Casting[edit]

On 18 April 2014, it was announced that Helgeland would write and direct the film, with the shooting being based in the United Kingdom and with Hardy starring as the male leads.[31] Five days later it was stated that Browning was in negotiations for a role as the film's female lead, although details of her role were not available.[32]

Filming[edit]

Crews and cast were spotted filming scenes at St Anne's Limehouse in Limehouse[33][34] and in the Windmill Walk area around London Waterloo.[35]

Principal photography started on 12 June 2014. The film was released in September 2015.[17][36]

Release[edit]

On 30 April 2014, Brian Oliver's Cross Creek Pictures acquired the North American distribution rights to Legend from StudioCanal, with a planned 2015 theatrical release through Universal Pictures in its distribution deal with the studio and Oliver also named as a producer on the film.[37][38] Financing for Legend will be provided by StudioCanal, which will also distribute the film throughout the territories of the United Kingdom, France, New Zealand, and Germany in addition to handling international sales, which started at the beginning of the Cannes Film Festival.[39] Sales to other territories such as Asia, Africa and much of Europe are being completed.[40] The film was originally set for an 2 October 2015, U.S release, but it was moved to 20 November 2015.[41]

Legend premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on 12 September 2015 at Roy Thomson Hall.

Marketing[edit]

On 13 June 2014, the first image of the film was published, featuring Hardy as the Kray twins.[6][42] A promotional poster attracted publicity because it made a two-star review from The Guardian appear to be a four- or five-star review by placing the two stars between the heads of the Krays.[43][44]

Reception[edit]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 63%, based on 56 reviews, and an average rating of 5.9/10. The site's consensus reads, "As a gangster biopic, Legend is deeply flawed, but as a showcase for Tom Hardy – in a dual role, no less – it just about lives up to its title."[45] On Metacritic the film has a score of 59 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[46]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "LEGEND (18)". British Board of Film Classification. 30 August 2015. Retrieved 30 August 2015. 
  2. ^ "TIFF.net". Retrieved 12 August 2015. 
  3. ^ "‘Legend,’ ‘Shaun,’ Smash Benchmarks for Studiocanal". Variety. Retrieved 14 September 2015. 
  4. ^ "Legend (2015)". Box Office Mojo. (Amazon.com). Retrieved 19 October 2015. 
  5. ^ "First Photo Of Tom Hardy As Both Ron And Reggie Kray". Empire. 12 June 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2014. 
  6. ^ a b c "Tom Hardy image as Kray twins released". BBC. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2014. 
  7. ^ "First Look: Tom Hardy as Infamous London Gangster Twins (Photo)". Hollywood Reporter. 12 June 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2014. 
  8. ^ "The Profession of Violence". Bloomsbury. 
  9. ^ "The Profession of Violence (eBook): The Rise and Fall of the Kray Twins". Waterstones. 
  10. ^ Singh, Anita (18 April 2014). "Tom Hardy to play both Kray twins in gangland film". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 10 September 2015. 
  11. ^ Tom Hardy had a serious ankle injury during a fight scene in a pub. "Tom Hardy injury". http://londonfilmpremieres.com/legend. 
  12. ^ "The Krays: A history of violence". BBC News Online. 4 April 2000. Retrieved 10 September 2015. 
  13. ^ a b c d Child, Ben (13 June 2014). "Tom Hardy plays Kray twins in Legend – first image". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 September 2015. 
  14. ^ "Emily Browning in Talks to Join Tom Hardy in Crime Thriller 'Legend'". Hollywood Reporter. 23 April 2014. Retrieved 23 April 2014. 
  15. ^ "Reggie Kray’s wife Frances Shea’s diaries: Drunken abuse, weapons and constant isolation". The Independent. 14 May 2014. Retrieved 14 May 2014. 
  16. ^ "City detective who helped crack case". Nottingham Post. 6 August 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2013. 
  17. ^ a b "LEGEND begins shooting, first image released". Working Title Films. 12 June 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2014. 
  18. ^ "Kray made deathbed murder confession". The Telegraph. 25 March 2001. Retrieved 25 March 2001. 
  19. ^ "Colin Morgan Seen on ‘Legend’ Set by JustJared". 18 June 2014. 
  20. ^ "The disputed resting place of a mobster's unhappy bride". The Guardian. 10 July 2004. Retrieved 10 July 2004. 
  21. ^ "Getting Away With Murder". Google. 25 August 2006. Retrieved 25 August 2006. 
  22. ^ "Legendary court comes back to life to tell lots of thrilling crime stories". Nottingham Post. 3 September 2013. Retrieved 3 September 2013. 
  23. ^ Darbyshire, Neil (30 August 2000). "Don't forget the Krays were killers". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 10 September 2015. 
  24. ^ "The Kray Twins: Brothers in Arms". CrimeLibrary. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2014. 
  25. ^ "Aneurin Barnard To Reprise Role as David Bailey in Gangster Thriller ‘Legend’". Up and Comers. 17 June 2014. Retrieved 17 June 2014. 
  26. ^ "The 10 best photographic portraits". The Guardian. 5 December 2010. Retrieved 5 December 2010. 
  27. ^ Weir, Andrew (27 August 2000). "Empire built on bayonets and billiard cues". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 10 September 2015. 
  28. ^ "Tom Hardy Eyes 'Legend' for 'L.A. Confidential' Writer Brian Helgeland". Yahoo Movies. 24 February 2014. Retrieved 24 February 2014. 
  29. ^ "Cannes: Tom Hardy Gangster Movie ‘Legend’ Acquired by Cross Creek". Deadline. 18 May 2014. Retrieved 18 May 2014. 
  30. ^ "StudioCanal readies Idris Elba, Ralph Fiennes films". Screen Daily. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2014. 
  31. ^ "Tom Hardy to play both Kray twins". The Guardian. 18 April 2014. 
  32. ^ "Emily Browning Joining Tom Hardy and Tom Hardy in Crime Thriller ‘Legend’". The Wrap. 23 April 2014. 
  33. ^ "Tom Hardy begins challenging dual role as both Kray twins in new gangster biopic, Legend". Daily Mail. 11 June 2014. Retrieved 11 June 2014. 
  34. ^ "Tom Hardy and Emily Browning film Krays movie Legend in London". Radio Times. 17 June 2014. Retrieved 17 June 2014. 
  35. ^ "Scene set for Kray twins movie in Waterloo’s Roupell Street". ITV. 6 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014. 
  36. ^ "Tom Hardy As Kray Twins Pic ‘Legend’ Firms Key Sales For Studiocanal". IndieWire. 18 May 2014. Retrieved 18 May 2014. 
  37. ^ "Brian Helgeland commences principal photography on Legend". StudioCanal. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2014. 
  38. ^ "Cross Creek Acquires Legend's North American Rights from Studiocanal". Studiocanal. 6 May 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2014. 
  39. ^ "‘Magic’ Sells to U.S. as ‘Macbeth,’ ‘Legend,’ ‘Bastille Day’ Power StudioCanal To Cannes Sales Record May 21, 2014". Variety. 21 May 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2014. 
  40. ^ "Cannes: Tom Hardy As Kray Twins Pic ‘Legend’ Firms Key Sales For Studiocanal". Variety. 18 May 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2014. 
  41. ^ http://deadline.com/2015/09/tom-hardy-legend-november-20-release-date-change-1201530590/
  42. ^ "First Image of Tom Hardy and Tom Hardy as Twin Gangsters in Brian Helgeland’s LEGEND". Collider. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2014. 
  43. ^ Young, Alex (9 September 2015). "Poster for new Tom Hardy film Legend expertly trolls negative reviewer: Gangster film proudly flaunts its two-star rating". Retrieved 10 September 2015. 
  44. ^ Lee, Benjamin (9 September 2015). "How my negative review of Legend was spun into movie marketing gold". Theguardian.com. Retrieved 10 September 2015. 
  45. ^ "Legend". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved 21 October 2015. 
  46. ^ "Legend". Metacritic. Metacritic. Retrieved 9 September 2015. 

External links[edit]