I first watched this film when it came out, 1999, and did not find it particularly memorable, apart from Stamp's steely performance, Fonda's sleazy character, and the film's conclusion.
I watched it again on 12 January 2018 and I have to own up to the fact that I must have been less than attentive when I first watched it. This time, I found the acting excellent across the board, the script far more interesting than I remembered, photography highly effective and economical, action sequences quite riveting, and director Steven Soderbergh to be in inspired form, even in his judicious use of flashbacks.
Do not take me wrong, THE LIMEY is not a masterpiece - and never purports to be anything even close. It is just a film well aware of its limitations, and highly credible because of that.
I watched it again on 12 January 2018 and I have to own up to the fact that I must have been less than attentive when I first watched it. This time, I found the acting excellent across the board, the script far more interesting than I remembered, photography highly effective and economical, action sequences quite riveting, and director Steven Soderbergh to be in inspired form, even in his judicious use of flashbacks.
Do not take me wrong, THE LIMEY is not a masterpiece - and never purports to be anything even close. It is just a film well aware of its limitations, and highly credible because of that.