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The Krays | |
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![]() Original UK theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Peter Medak |
Written by | Philip Ridley |
Produced by | Dominic Anciano Ray Burdis |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Alex Thomson |
Edited by | Martin Walsh |
Music by | Michael Kamen |
Production companies | Fugitive Features Parkfield Entertainment |
Distributed by | Rank Film Distributors |
Release date |
|
Running time | 119 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Box office | $9 million |
The Krays is a 1990 British biographical crime drama film directed by Peter Medak. The film is based on the lives and crimes of the British gangster twins Ronald and Reginald Kray, often referred to as The Krays. [1] The film stars Billie Whitelaw, Tom Bell, and real life brothers (although not twin brothers) Gary and Martin Kemp, both of whom were members of the band Spandau Ballet. [1]
The film charts the lives of the Kray twins from childhood to adult life. The plot focuses on the relationship between the twins and their doting mother (Whitelaw). Ronald (Gary Kemp) is the dominant one, influencing his brother Reginald (Martin Kemp) to perform several acts of violence as they rise to power as the leaders of a powerful organised gang in 1960s London. The movie focuses more on the personal life of the brothers, including Reg's marriage and then alienation from his wife, culminating in her suicide. The movie omits the police investigation going against the Krays and ends with a jump-cut to them attending their mother's funeral in 1982, already serving time in prison by then.
The Krays holds a rating of 82% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 17 reviews.
The film opened at the top of the UK box office with a gross of £1,036,117 for the week. [2] It remained at number one for a second week [3] and went on to gross £3,707,649 ($7 million) at the UK box office. [4] In the United States and Canada, it grossed $2,060,847. [5]
Ghost is a 1990 American supernatural romance film directed by Jerry Zucker from a screenplay by Bruce Joel Rubin, and starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, Whoopi Goldberg, Tony Goldwyn, Vincent Schiavelli, and Rick Aviles. It focuses on Sam Wheat (Swayze), a murdered banker, whose ghost sets out to save his girlfriend, Molly Jensen (Moore), from the person who killed him – through the help of the psychic Oda Mae Brown (Goldberg).
Ronald (Ronnie) Kray and Reginald (Reggie) Kray were English organised crime figures, and identical twin brothers from Haggerston, who operated mostly in the East End of London from the late 1950s until their arrest in 1968. With their gang, known as the Firm which was based in Bethnal Green, the Kray twins were involved in murder, armed robbery, arson, protection rackets, gambling and assaults. At their peak in the 1960s, they gained a certain measure of celebrity status by mixing with prominent members of London society, being photographed by David Bailey and interviewed on television.
Gary James Kemp is an English songwriter, musician and actor, best known as the lead guitarist, backing vocalist, and principal songwriter for the new wave band Spandau Ballet.
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Billie Honor Whitelaw was an English actress. She worked in close collaboration with Irish playwright Samuel Beckett for 25 years and was regarded as one of the foremost interpreters of his works. She was also known for her portrayal of Mrs. Baylock, the demonic nanny in the 1976 horror film The Omen.
Thomas George Bell was an English actor on stage, film and television. He often played "menacing or seedy roles, perhaps most memorably playing sexist Detective Sergeant Bill Otley, antagonist to Helen Mirren's DCI Jane Tennison in Prime Suspect.
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Philip Ridley is an English storyteller working in a wide range of artistic media.
Jack McVitie, best known as Jack the Hat, was an English criminal from London during the 1950s and 1960s. He is posthumously famous for triggering the imprisonment and downfall of the Kray twins. He had acted as an enforcer and hitman with links to The Firm, and was murdered by Reggie Kray in 1967.
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Royston Henry Shaw, also known as Roy "Pretty Boy" Shaw, Roy "Mean Machine" Shaw and Roy West, was a property investor, author and businessman from the East End of London who was formerly a criminal and Category A prisoner. During the 1970s–1980s, Shaw was active in the criminal underworld of London and was associated with the Kray twins. Shaw is best remembered today for his career as a fighter on the unlicensed boxing scene, becoming an arch-rival of Lenny McLean.
Cujo is a 1983 American horror film based on Stephen King's 1981 novel of the same name and directed by Lewis Teague. It was written by Don Carlos Dunaway and Barbara Turner, and starring Dee Wallace, Daniel Hugh Kelly and Danny Pintauro.
Born Fighter is an autobiographical book written by Reginald Kray. In 1969 he and his twin brother Ronnie Kray received life sentences for the murders of George Cornell and Jack McVitie. First published in London in 1990 in hardback by Century and paperback in 1991 by subsidiary Arrow Books.
My Story is an autobiographical book written by Ronnie Kray. He, along with his twin brother Reggie, were said to be some of the most feared gangsters in British history.
Martin John Kemp is an English musician and actor, best known as the bassist in the new wave band Spandau Ballet and for his role as Steve Owen in EastEnders.
Legend is a 2015 biographical crime thriller film written and directed by American director Brian Helgeland. It is adapted from John Pearson's book The Profession of Violence: The Rise and Fall of the Kray Twins, which deals with their career and the relationship that bound them together, and follows their gruesome career to life imprisonment in 1969.
Whitney is a 2018 documentary film about the American singer and actress Whitney Houston. The film was directed by Kevin Macdonald and produced by Simon Chinn, Jonathan Chinn and Lisa Erspamer. Whitney was screened out of competition at the world premiere as part of the 2018 Cannes Film Festival on 16 May 2018 with a cinema release on 6 July 2018. The film was also released on home media where it debuted at number one on the UK Official Music Video Chart. The film received positive reviews from critics and audiences and grossed $4.7 million worldwide at the box office. In December 2018, Whitney was nominated at the 61st Grammy Awards for Best Music Film.
Charles James Kray was an English ex-professional boxer and convicted criminal. He was the elder brother of Ronnie and Reggie Kray.
The Profession of Violence: The Rise and Fall of the Kray Twins is a 1972 biography of the Kray twins by John Pearson. It details the life of the twins from their births, childhood, criminal careers, and eventual arrest. It was nominated for the 1974 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Fact Crime. It was followed by The Cult of Violence: The Untold Story of the Krays in 2001 and Notorious: The Immortal Legend of the Kray Twins in 2010.