The Legend of Barney Thomson (2015)

Some of the negative reviewers on here need to return to playing with their i-phones, because only that will take them back to a plastic world that simply doesn't get surreal black comedy. Surreal - ever heard of the word? And all you lot can say is that the plot is "unlikely"! Yes, surreal. That is what Barney Thomson is. And black comedy. You can feel it coming right from the start, the opening an essay in drabness and dreariness which would sit well in a Python sketch, and just as in one of those, you know something is about to leap out and grab you, but you have no idea what. Something totally unexpected. And just as nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition, neither does anyone expect what Barney is about to do, and then nobody could possibly expect what his mother is about to do, and has indeed been doing for some time. It is an absolute riot, and my wife and I were falling off our seats with laughter. Brilliant! 10/10

Firstly, I have immense high regard for the four principal actors in this film; namely, Robert Carlyle, Ray Winstone, Tom Courtennay and Emma Thompson. Their resumes' over the years have been the envy of any aspiring actor/actress. That said, why on earth did they subscribe to this dire movie?Granted Tom Courtenay played the irascible Chief Superintendent well but I'm getting a little tired that the boss is always depicted this way. The world over film makers do the same thing, wouldn't it be refreshing if the boss was portrayed as a kind, supportive human being for once? Emma Thompson did well taking off the Glaswegian accent, Ray Winstone did well playing Ray Winstone and Robert Carlyle was just OK playing the guy where life just isn't being nice to him.For me the film lacked direction and fell between two stools, it wasn't particularly funny so at best was a very poor comedy and it certainly wasn't dark humour, so it basically fell short on all counts.Do not be seduced by the cast like I had been. Avoid.

Robert Carlyle's directional debut The Legend Of Barney Thomsen is as pitch friggin black as dark comedies get, and is a side splitting royal circus of cheekily depressing, gloriously gory antics that would make the inhabitants of Fargo run for cover. It also has the distinct flavour of Scotland on its side, every character articulating with a soup thick, snark oozing brogue that throws a devilishly funny haze over the already hilarious comic material. Carlyle plays pathetic barber Barney Thomsen, a volatile, feeble little man who's been relegated to the worst chair in the barbershop, and told what an aggravating, listless nonce he is by his colleagues ("you look like a haunted tree" his supervisor intones in dead seriousness). When they threaten to fire him, he accidentally murders his supervisor with a pair of scissors, and kicks offa blood soaked odyssey of such head banging idiocracy that one can only view this as an ultraviolent looney toons cartoon of murder and madness. Barney finds himself in way over his head and tries to excavate himself out of the dodgy situation he got himself into. There's also a serial killer on the loose in Glasgow that likes to mail body parts to the police, including a dick and a full severed human buttocks, in giddily explicit detail. He's pursued by a maniacal police detective played by Ray Winstone, who plays the role like a Christmas ham hooked up to jumper cable powered by methamphetamine. For an actor to out-crazy Robert Carlyle takes a lot of effort, but Winstone is game, pulling the cork of sanity right out for a howlingly funny piece of work. And then there's Emma Thompson. Holeee crap. I've never seen her cut loose like she does here, playing Barney's cantankerous, potty mouthed, shrivelled old walnut of a mother. She's caked in paper mâché looking makeup and gurgles forth the funniest Scottish accenting the film. You'd have to check the credits to know its Thompson having a bit of fun from her usual serious fare as this skanky, deplorable old baboon and loving every minute of it. Thrown in James Cosmo and a priceless Tom Courtney as a cynical Superintendent, and you've got a cast that's game to give their all for director Carlyle, whose already established competence in off kilter comedic acting clearly extends wonderfully behind the camera as well. A blistering powder keg to kick off 2016, and a full on blood soaked barrel of laughs.

I watched this in a cinema and there was a lot of laughter coming from the audience. One man even laughed at the first line. The laughing continued throughout.I would have given the film 10 stars but the story is a bit ridiculous. But, since it is comedy, and IS funny this didn't seem to matter too much. The ending was amusing too. The film is beautifully shot and the acting is 1st class. My favourite line delivered brilliantly by Emma is "I label everything." And I agree with another reviewer that in the future, this may be considered a cult classic.