Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

The Krays Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 22, 2024

Peter Medak's "The Krays" (1990) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Second Sight. The supplemental features on the release include new program with Peter Medak; new program with producer Ray Burdis; new program with screenwriter Philip Ridley; archival audio commentary with Peter Medak, Gary Kemp, and Martin Kemp; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Peter Medak made one of the greatest neo-noir films, Romeo Is Bleeding, so it is quite disappointing to see his name attached to a mediocre project like The Krays. However, some of the major weaknesses of The Krays were probably unavoidable.

The narrative is broken into multiple episodes that reconstruct different segments from the rise and fall of what some believe were Britain’s most notorious gangsters. The early episodes are the shortest ones, which is understandable because the only crucial information there is that teenagers Ronnie Kray (Gary Kemp) and Reggie Kray (Martin Kemp) were quickly evolving into bullies who genuinely loved their mother (Billie Whitelaw). Their father? Not so much, which is why at the right time they made it clear to him that if he tried to hurt her, they would kill him. In another episode, the older brothers are seen moving into the protection business, dealing with some competitors, and taking over a nightclub that would become their lair in London. Soon after, Reggie meets and falls in love with Rose (Susan Fleetwood), and after visiting Rose’s parents, the two begin planning their wedding. Ronnie chooses to remain single while dating men and occasionally women. Having acquired a nationwide reputation for being vicious animals and significantly expanded their businesses, the brothers are visited by an American gangster and offered valuable cooperation in multiple areas. But it all begins to fall apart when Rose commits suicide and different disputes with local competitors slowly push the brothers into the abyss of madness.

The Krays fails to tell an even remotely intriguing story, but Medak should not be blamed because the true story of Ronnie and Reggie is pretty dull. These guys were vicious bullies who spent virtually all of their time beating up other bullies who dared to tell the truth, which was that they were not special. Indeed, even though they genuinely believed they were invincible, the brothers were neither very smart nor very ambitious, so their greatest accomplishments remained random brawls and a few shootouts that the local papers hyped up as much as possible. Medak reconstructs a few of these brawls and shootouts while showing as much graphic content as possible, and then wraps up the film.

The Krays could have been a better film with more peripheral activity. For example, Medak does not reveal much about the people who wanted to see the brothers fail and quickly. Steven Berkoff has a few moments where he looks unhinged and declares his hatred for them, but he is just another lowlife. What about the local government figures that may have been working with or against the brothers? What about local police authorities that may have been on their payroll? The ripple effects from these unavoidable relationships never become a meaningful factor in the story.

The acting is a mixed bag, too. The Kemp brothers frequently mishandle their energy and lines, and as a result their supposedly unbridled anger begins to look strikingly artificial. Disappointment, shock, and pain are equally tricky for them, too. (The scene where Martin learns about the passing of his mother should have been completely redone because it simply does not look right). Hardie looks unnaturally brittle while being with her violent husband as well.

Medak worked with master cinematographer Alex Thomson, whose credits include such visual stunners as Year of the Dragon, Excalibur, and Labyrinth. Unfortunately, the period footage from London is impossible to praise.

The Krays Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Krays arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Second Sight.

The film has a slightly dated appearance. There are no traces of problematic digital corrections and delineation, clarity, and depth are usually pleasing. However, there are numerous areas with small yet noticeable color pulsations/shimmering, so the dynamic range of the visuals is nowhere near as good, stable, and convincing as it can be. Also, select highlights and darker nuances can be rebalanced. All visuals look clean. However, on a large screen, some tiny blemishes become easy to spot. Image stability is very good. All in all, this release offers a decent organic presentation of the film, but there is definitely room for several meaningful improvements. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

The Krays Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

Unlike the video, the audio does not reveal any obvious signs of aging. All dialog is very clear, clean, and sharp. The stability is excellent, too. Michael Kamen's soundtrack quick easily produces memorable contrasts as well. However, the strength of the lossless track is most obvious during the action material, which of course is hardly surprising. I did not encounter any encoding anomalies to report in our review.

The Krays Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary One - this audio commentary was recorded by critic Scott Harrison.

• Commentary Two - this audio commentary was recorded by Peter Medak, Gary Kemp and Martin Kemp.

• East End Medak - in this exclusive new program, Peter Medak explains how he first met the Kray brothers during the shooting of Sparrows Can't Sing (on which he was an assistant director) and how they became good friends, and discusses their fascination with classic American gangster films (and especially the ones with George Raft), the casting process for The Krays, the shooting process, etc. In English, not subtitled. (22 min).

• Burdis Meets The Krays - in this exclusive new program, producer Ray Burdis explains how he met the Kray brothers befor a decision was made to shoot The Krays and shares his impressions of the two gangsters. Also, there are some interesting comments about the casting choices that were made and the hiring of writer Philip Ridley. In English, not subtitled. (16 min).

• Writing The Krays - in this exclusive new audio program, writer Philip Ridley explains how he was approached to do the screenplay for The Krays and discusses its evolution. In English, not subtitled. (36 min).

• BFI Q&A - this archival filmed Q&A session features comments from Gary Kemp, Martin Kemp, Kate Hardie, Peter Medak, and Philip Ridley about the conception and production of The Krays. For a long time, Roger Daltrey had the rights to the original material, so in the past everyone assumed that a film about the famous gangsters will have his name attached to it. In English, not subtitled. (48 min).

The Krays Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I could be wrong, but I think that The Krays turned out as it did because Peter Medak had become a good friend of the notorious gangsters. Producer Ray Burdis also reveals that he had to have their endorsement of the material that would be used in the film. It is why The Krays feels too safe and restrained, despite its graphic violence too politically correct as well. Where is all the illuminating information about the important public figures in London that were on the gangsters' payroll? And where is all the detailed information about the various people that betrayed them? I like a lot of Medak's work and think that Romeo Is Bleeding is one of the greatest neo-noir films, so The Krays left me seriously underwhelmed. This recent release from Second Sight has several very interesting exclusive new bonus features, including a program with Medak in which he comments on his relationship with the gangsters. RECOMMENDED only to the fans.