Mr. Nice trailer
Caught Mr. Nice last night at the Cinema Village - it’s been ages since I last saw a film there, but the place hasn’t changed much…a taste of Old New York amidst the sprawling suburban multiplex hell that’s taken over the city.
Rhys Ifans stars as Howard Marks, one of the most infamous cannabis smugglers of the 20th Century. The movie takes us from his first exposure to hash at Oxford through his manifold adventures in Ireland, Pakistan and Hollywood up to his period of incarceration. Supposedly Ifans was personally chosen by Marks to play the role; he certainly makes the man look good, effortlessly charming in that “immaculately stoned” way. (One could be uncharitable and say that Ifans only portrays stoners & ne’er-do-wells – I’ll agree he gets typecast, but his onscreen presence is undeniable.)
David Thewlis was FANTASTIC as Jim McCann, head of the Provisonal IRA. He and Ifans had excellent chemistry – one’s booming scattershot bombast contrasting beautifully with the other’s somnolent demeanor. His final scene in the movie was well worth the price of admission! Chloë Sevigny was also rather good as Judy Marks, Howard’s long-suffering (and surprisingly loyal) wife.
Movies of this nature often glamorize the drug trade, downplaying the more execrable aspects of both use/abuse/addiction and the socio-politics of how drugs get from the fields to your sitting room. There’s not much point in complaining, since you know from the start you’re dealing with a very specific perspective. I’d have preferred a more balanced telling of the drug-smuggling life; a bit more lemon and less sugar in the lemonade. To be fair, the movie does show Marks’ “happy normal family” facade completely falling apart once he gets busted, and there’s a harrowing scene at the prison dental facility, but those two bits don’t even out the determined rosy glow of everything that preceded them.
That said, I enjoyed Mr. Nice. Today’s its last day at Cinema Village, so if you’re in NYC and want to see it on the big screen, now’s your chance. Otherwise, if it shows up on Netflix it’s worth checking out via stream or DVD.
