Lock Stock and Two smoking barrels Tagged Articles at Cinematical

I haven't seen Four Weddings and a Funeral since it came out, but I remember it being a fun, quality movie -- more so than your usual rom-com flavor. The Hugh Grant-starring film not only brought in a good chunk of coin and fans, but it also received Oscar nominations for Best Picture and Best Screenplay. However, is it the best British movie of all time? That I'm not so sure about. Yes folks, the Hugh Grant comedy was recently listed the best British Film, according to a poll conducted by Virgin Media (via AOL UK).

Having polled 1,000 adults on June 25 and 26, Virgin notes that Four Weddings took in 22% of the vote, to get the top spot. The rom-com squeaked right by the wonderful Monty Python's Life of Brian, which suffered defeat by just 1% and grabbed the #2 spot. (It's also the only film that boasts a little age.) After that comedy classic, things get rougher and tougher. Next came Trainspotting with 15% of the vote, then Casino Royale with 10%, and Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels came in #5 with 8%.

I'm probably not alone in this, but until today I had never heard of the British music legend Joe Meek -- but I guess that's what Wikipedia is for. Dark Horizons is reporting that the former lead singer of The Darkness, Justin Hawkins, and ex-Libertine guitarist, Carl Barat, have signed on for roles in a biopic about "the flamboyantly gay, tone deaf, songwriter-producer". I wish they could call it that, but they're going with Telstar instead. So be it. Meek was an independent producer and songwriter who was credited with being one of the pioneers of modern music. Notable for being truly independent, he worked out of his home and crafted a string of hits in the '60s. Like many other icons of the '60s, Meek's life came to a tragic end when he murdered his landlady before taking his own life in 1967.

Nick Moran of Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels fame will make his directorial debut with the film; he also wrote the 2005 stage play called Telstar (named after one of Meek's big hits) which serves as the basis for the film, including the title. Back in July, Patrick had reported that Kevin Spacey had already signed on for a role as Major Banks, one of Meek's financial supporters. Some of the other cast listed on the flick's IMDB page are a little stranger; mainly the inclusion of The Daily Show's Jon Stewart in the part of 'Dennis'. There is no word on who Hawkins or Barat will play, but it definitely won't be the lead, since British actor Con O'Neill is reprising his role from the stage as Meek. Telstar is currently in post-production and is set for release sometime in 2008.

*Correction: Image removed due to copyright issues

I've never been much of a Guy Ritchie fan. When people lament the poisonous affect wife Madonna has supposedly had on his career, I tell them to go back and watch Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and dare them not to cringe. After all – if there's anything worse than a Tarantino impression, it's a Tarantino impression done in a British accent. Still, the blokes got his share of fans, and surely at least one or two of them will be happy to hear the following rumor: the tabloids are buzzing that Guy, despondant over the alleged affect that Maddie has had on his film career, wants to break up. According to Perez Hilton, the split is likely to be announced by summer, but those dying for a glimpse into exactly what Ritchie's blaming the missus for would be advised to seek out Ritchie's latest, Revolver. The allegedly awful, Kabbalah-infused (and thus, evidently Madonna-influenced) caper flick, which bombed with European critics but scraped together so-so UK returns, opens in the US later this month.