TMS 30 Greatest Movies: #29 Snatch

Title: Snatch
Year: 2000
Genre: Action, Comedy
Main Actors: Jason Statham, Brad Pitt, Vinnie Jones, Benicio Del Toro, Dennis Farina
Ranked: Brant Brown #15, Chip Wesley #12

Synopsis
OK so, the movie takes place in the seedy underbelly of London, where folks deal in stolen diamonds, dogfighting and unlicensed bare-knuckle boxing. Frankie Four Fingers (Del Toro) and his crew steal a incredibly large diamond in Antwerp. Frankie then heads to London to sell the stone to Doug the Head, only one of his counterparts in the heist tips off Boris the Blade, aka Boris the Bullet Dodger, who then hires a couple of small-time crooks to rob Frankie. Oh and then there's Turkish (Statham), who with his sidekick Tommy, manage a fighter named Gorgeous George. George is slated to fight someone managed by London mob boss Brick Top, but before the fight, Tommy and George head to a camp full of Irish gypsies (referred to as 'pikeys' throughout the film) to purchase a caravan. The deal goes sour and George is forced to fight Mickey (Pitt) who manages to knockout George with one punch. Now without a fighter, Turkish is forced to use Mickey instead, and as payback, Brick Top tells him to throw the fight. Then....ah Christ, I hate writing synopses! This story is too convoluted to explain. Anyway there's plenty of shenanigans that take place and Turkish's story and the story of the diamond somehow become intertwined, and somewhere in between there's a dog that swallows a squeaky toy, Vinnie Jones plays a badass as usual, and Brad Pitt speaks pikey gibberish. If you've seen "Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels" they plotline is pretty much the same.

Reasons This Movie Kicks Ass
Well for starters there's the title. As juvenile as it sounds, it's still funny to ask people, "Hey, have you seen Snatch?"

Like I said, the movie is a lot like Guy Ritchie's previous film "Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels", in that their's multiple storylines that somehow become intertwined and connected, except this time he had a much bigger budget and tossed in some American actors. The movie is fast-paced and visually pretty sweet to look at. There's plenty of humor mixed into some truly twisted scenes. Hell Brad Pitt playing the pikey boxer Mickey is worth the price of admission alone.

One thing for me that makes the movie is the soundtrack. Looking at my personal Top 30 I submitted for the TMS 30, I noticed the vast majority of films on my list had a soundtrack or score that I thought kicked ass, and Snatch is no exception.

Monster Role
Like I said, Brad Pitt as Mickey was awesome. Between his crazy pikey gibberish, which anyone that's a fan of the movie can sheepishly admit they've tried to imitate and failed miserably, and the fact he's tough as petrified shit, Pitt pretty much steals all the scenes he's in.

Vinnie Jones as Bullet-Toothed Tony is also pretty good, and I'd give him credit had he not played virtually the exact same character in "Lock Stock".

Knock Your Dick in the Dirt Moment
I've already mentioned that I enjoyed the soundtrack, and for me the evidence is in two scenes that used the songs perfectly.

The first being the scene that uses "Angel" by Massive Attack. That song has been used numerous times in films and tv shows, but Snatch is the one movie to truly 'nail it' as far as incorporating it properly. I can't really explain the scene without giving spoilers, but it always gives me goose bumps.

The second scene is the final fight at the end with Brad Pitt and one of Brick Top's fighters, which uses the song "Fucking in the Bushes" by Oasis. Perfect song choice as it gets you incredibly pumped up and builds the excitement leading to the film's climax. Now whenever I hear that song, I can't help but get all fired up and start sizing folks up like I'm gonna fight them. Of course if I actually picked a fight with anyone it would sadly end with me crying in a crumpled nerd-heap in the corner.

Watch this movie if you like.....
having ADD, "Lock Stock", bareknuckle boxing, people being fed to pigs (oh yeah I forgot to mention that part), proper use of Oasis and Massive Attack songs in film, Brad Pitt being a dirty gypsy, British shit in general.

Why the fuck do I want a caravan that's got no fucking wheels?