‘The Gentlemen’ review round-up: Theo James leads cast of ‘colorful characters’ in Netflix crime drama
On March 7, 2024, Netflix released “The Gentlemen” from creator and director Guy Ritchie. The eight-episode crime drama stars Emmy nominee Theo James (“The White Lotus”) and is a spin-off of Ritchie’s 2019 film of the same name. In the series James plays Eddie, a man who inherits his family estate, initially unaware it’s home to a drug empire run by a syndicate that has no plans to vacate.
Early reviews from critics have earned it a favorable score of 73% on Rotten Tomatoes. The ensemble cast includes Kaya Scodelario, Daniel Ings, Joely Richardson, Giancarlo Esposito, Peter Serafinowicz and Dar Salim (who recently starred in Ritchie’s “The Covenant”). Read our full review round-up below.
Megan Garside of Total Film says, “’The Gentlemen’ feels like something we have seen many times before from Guy Ritchie. But what it lacks in originality, it makes up for in humor and an array of colorful characters.” Concluding, “From the sleek costuming to the riddled language, it is pretty obvious the series is from the mind of the man who brought us the 2019 flick. Spinning off from that movie is an immense task, but rather than rehashing the exact story (which I am so glad they decided not to do), the series tells the tale through Eddie’s eyes. By doing this we see a different side to the business and more importantly, get a look at how the different classes from the traveling community to the elite interact, which we only got a small taste of in the film.”
Vicky Jessop of London Evening Standard writes, “This all sounds wearily like going over old ground but surprisingly I found this hard to hate. It’s just too fun: the fast cars, the increasingly unhinged baddies and how everything keeps going wrong in ever more spectacular ways.” Noting, “Oh and Vinnie Jones – whose role in Ritchie’s breakout ‘Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels’ made the former footballer a film star for a while – is back too. He’s playing a gun-happy gamekeeper who nevertheless has a soft spot for bringing home wounded animals, and while his role is pretty 2D, it’s good to have him back.”
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Bob Strauss of The Wrap notes, “While the overall impression is one of creative resurgence, it’s a tad disappointing that this new ‘Gentlemen’ doesn’t really go anywhere, well, new. But as some toff might tell you, the joy is in the journey, not necessarily the destination.” Continuing, “The series touches on politics (Brexit’s bad for pot exports!) and strives to get at deeper themes, but only illuminates them in black comic ways. Family loyalty is a big deal to the Glasses, most of the Hornimans and their retainers, and certain other crime clans; while deception is the series’ main game, betrayal is considered quite intolerable and harshly dealt with. Class conflicts don’t bring much to that centuries-old table; self-made crime barons with better taste than old money scions aren’t exactly revolutionary, while nobility’s capacity to out-maneuver uppity proles is well documented.”
Nate Richard of Collider praises the series, stating, “While adapting a film into a television show hasn’t always worked out before, ‘The Gentlemen’ is the perfect example of improving an already perfectly good movie by expanding on it to tell a new, and even better, story.” Adding, “While James may have risen to fame for his role in the oft-forgotten ‘Divergent’ movies, he has quickly been able to rebound with juicier roles, much like Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart did after ‘Twilight.’ After a scene-stealing turn in ‘The White Lotus’ Season 2 earned him his first Emmy nomination, his performance as Eddie Horniman feels like the perfect next step. James can play the most charismatic figure while also having his character come across as a selfish prick in the same scene.”
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