Harry Brown
Sir Michael Caine saw a lot of himself in the character of Harry Brown, they're both combat veterans (Harry is a Marine who served in Northern Ireland, Caine served in the British Army during the Korean war), and Caine lived in the same area that Brown does. It was things like these that drew him to this movie.,At the canal, D.I. Frampton says to D.S. Hickock that she smelled cordite on Harry Brown's coat, implying him having fired a gun. Cordite is obsolete: it's no longer produced. This is a forgivable mistake though, because although cordite production ended in the 1960s, the term is still used generically in the UK for gun powders.,Frampton: It's not Northern Ireland Harry.
Harry Brown: No it's not. Those people were fighting for something; for a cause. To them out there, this is just entertainment.,Available in two different versions. Runtimes are: "1h 43m (103 min)" and "1h 37m (97 min) (Toronto International) (Canada)".,Featured in Late Show with David Letterman: Courtney Love/Michael Caine/Hole (2010),I Love London (Delta Heavy Remix)
Performed by Crystal Fighters
Written by Gilbert Vierich, Sebastian Pringle, Graham Dickson
Produced by Crystal Fighters
Remixed by Delta Heavy
Published by Copyright Control
(p) 2009 Crystal Fighters exclusively licensed to Kitsune,Watched this at a London preview screening

This is an enjoyable, and often tense vigilante film. But don't look for a radical plot line or unpredictable twists because this is simply a straight forward and predictable Death Wish style vigilante story. I'll give absolutely no credit to the screenplay writer for that.

But full marks to the director for turning up the high tensions to make this still an exciting film. Having lived in a council estate myself, I know how frightening some youngsters are and can be more terrifying than the recent flurry of zombie films.

However, this is Michael Caine's show and is a fine addition to the recent surge of old tough guys fighting back movies such as Gran Torino. Caine was brilliant as usual. He makes the most of a pitifully typical script. That is of a widower seeking violent vengeance on the youths who killed his friend. He played it subtle and his vigilante transition was done just right. He isn't turned into some unrealistic slick killing machine or a Rambo. He has typical elderly obstacles such as breathing problems, slow reflexes and old bones but some of his military skills give him a chance. There is a also a sub plot involving a female detective on his trail but it so underwritten, I just didn't care.

The actors playing the youths were very very convincing and help to root for our pensioner hero even more. So it is satisfying to see our legendary cockney actor clean up some really nasty bad guys.,