Does Guy Ritchie’s Netflix crime drama live up to expectations?

Just over two and a half years after the first season, The Gentlemen Season Two hit Netflix on the 3rd of September. It’s taken me this long to drudge my way through this. You can probably guess what’s coming next?!

I quite enjoyed the first season, even though I spent most of it being fairly confused as to where this slots in with the film of the same name. It’s fair to say that while I enjoyed some aspects, it could never compete with the superb movie this is extremely loosely based on.

So I went it this season hoping that the formula had been dialled in, and much more awaited me. The first few episodes set the scene for what was to come, and frankly, I found it difficult to get through them. The issue isn’t so much the production value or the cast, it’s more the fact that the pacing is so ridiculously slow, the scripting is weak, to the point where it tested my patience at times. The urge to just switch off and forget it, hit hard.

Ray Winstone is usually a joy to watch in any role he occupies, but in this instance, he’s seriously underused. Add to that a supernatural twist to the character, and it just falls into the realm of the utterly ridiculous. Theo James is OK, he’s suited to the role very well, but I don’t think he was given much to play with. It’s very much a play by numbers affair. Kaya Scodelario is great as Suzie Glass, but again, it’s almost as if the writers wanted to bring her character more into the action of the piece, but were afraid to fully commit.
The standout performance is actually Vinne Jones, who has developed a well considered character, who is not gung-ho and guns blazing. He is a bit flat on the odd occasion, but it’s no big deal and it shows his acting skills have certainly improved over the years.

The story is pretty weak, and in several episodes it felt like the story was filled with bloat to fill out the runtime. Sub plots and and side stories that go absolutely nowhere, fast! At one point, the ‘Mary Jane’s Tobacco’ workers form a union and strike. It goes nowhere and has no real point. There are good points, where Eddie receives an intense beating, which felt quite visceral. These moments however, are few and far between. Eddie’s brother has some screen time, and develops into a plot point all of it’s own. I’m sure this will be used much more in the inevitable Season 3.

The production value has clearly been spent on jolly’s over to Italy, which I’m sure the cast absolutely loved. Unfortunately, while relatively important to the arching story, it does feel as if this was the majority of the budget spent, leaving little room for much more.

If you’re a fan of the first season, I’m sure you’ll love jumping into this headlong. If you’re on the fence from the first season, then you’ll want to avoid this. You’ll only be wasting your valuable time. I really can’t tell you how many times I resisted the urge to turn off and go watch some paint dry. Given that my wife was painting at the the time, it was a real temptation!

In summary, this is bland, bloated and at least two episodes too long. My advice is go watch the movie instead!

I give this show…

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Until the next review…go watch the movie. You can thank me later.