THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY

MIFF has tracked down a new 35mm print to celebrate the 21st anniversary of this British crime classic. Bob Hoskins is chilling as super thug Harold Shand. A self-made mob leader, Shand harbours grand designs to transform London's Docklands into a Thames-side Manhattan with financial support from a New York crime family. Mafia ambassadors arrive in London to a champagne yacht reception thrown in their honour, with Shand keen to impress his prospective financiers. Trouble is something has become rotten at the heart of Shand's empire. "Over the course of one Easter weekend, Harolds world begins to crumble: his sidekick is stabbed to death; bombs rip through one of his pubs and his Rolls Royce. killing his driver. After unsuccessfully rallying his muscle to intimidate his gangland peers into confession, Shand becomes increasingly desperate to discover the identities of his newfound enemies before they destroy him. "The Long Good Friday has aged beautifully with its superb performances (particularly from Helen Mirren as the icy Victoria) and slow-burning atmosphere still intact. Its wordless final scene remains one of cinema's greatest twists and perhaps Hoskins' finest on-screen moment."— Empire Magazine.