Friday Night Flicks: Sexy Beast

Sexy Beast didn’t have to be one of the most unconventionally genius crime flicks of the 21st century to leave an impression on me. The name alone could’ve done that… but the fact that the opening credits are set to “Peaches” by the Stranglers, one of the greatest weirdo-punk tunes of all time - and certainly the lewdest summertime anthem to ever emerge from the British Isles - doesn’t hurt, either.

Without giving away too much, Sexy Beast follows the exploits of a ex-criminal named Gal, living out his golden years somewhere outside of Malaga, poolside, with the clear intent of spending the rest of his days burning to a crisp beneath the Spanish sun. One day, the arrival of a former associate, the hotheaded and tempestuous “Don,” threatens to upend his retirement: Don is dead set on recruiting Gal for a bizarre, underwater bank heist in London, despite Gal’s insistence that he’s “out for good.” It’s the quintessential “one last job” plot, albeit with a distinctly European, semi-arthouse twist. Think Holy Motors meets Carlito’s Way.

In the ensuing quarrel, blood is spilled. The psychic fog sets in. Reality gradually slips away. Uzi-wielding rabbits stalk their prey. And that’s just the first act.—Jackson Todd