To me, this movie is perfection.

Powerful

A Masterpiece!

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

"The Sweeney" is a carefully nuanced psychological study about the challenges and stresses of modern police work. Understated and modest, it moves towards a delicately handled emotional conclusion where the various intelligent plot lines meet and mingle. Its subtle calm and intimate...BWHAHA HAHA ! Almost had you going there !Nah, the movie is just an excuse to watch cops going medieval on gangsters' asses. At this level, it certainly delivers : the viewer gets many a beautifully filmed gun fight, battle and car chase. Most of it is set against the background of a modern London pulsing with glamour, promise and menace - well done, again. The persons who did the casting deserve a large, a very large crate of pink champagne, since many of the actors look as if they were born in order to perform these roles.Sadly, the movie is cliché-ridden. Brilliant but rash policemen overseen by a more reticent boss and hounded by a mean-spirited bureaucrat from Internal Affairs ? The pattern exists at least since the 1960's. Moreover there is an argentinosaurus-sized hole where good sense is concerned. In Great-Britain, as in most democratic societies ruled by law, criminal prosecutions and trials tend to collapse when it becomes clear a) that evidence was obtained in a cavalier or illegal manner or b) that suspects or witnesses were mistreated. Apply these rules to the kick 'em beat 'em stomp 'em tactics of the police team involved and it's safe to say that much of their activities are futile at best, counter-productive at worst. As a result they might just as well spend their time breeding prize rabbits or writing a hagiography about Saint Jan Berchmans.

Just reading the title you can guess the story line. This is the worst cliché blokey caricature of a Neanderthal police force I've ever seen. The swearing and violence are continuous as is the misogyny. Considering the appalling current reputation of the British Police force this is probably the biggest PR disaster in years. The dialogue is as primitive and dire as the acting. Winstone and Plan B are clumsy cartoon characters of crooks playing policemen. Winstone's relationship with the lawyers wife is the most unbelievable part of the whole film. I'm actually having trouble writing anything more about this as I really feel it isn't worth of any more words. Should have gone straight to Men and Motors.

I really had to review this to vent my spleen. How bad is it? Let me count the ways. Long and rambling with no real plot. Doesn't the writer know about the three act structure? It was obvious from the start that there was another reason for the incident at the end of the jeweller robbery but it took the Sweeney a long time to figure it out. Winstone and his tough Cockney geezer stuff is so boring particularly now he's a fat old git. And fat old its don't get young women except in the movies and on TV and why couldn't we see her arse instead of his fat old one? The proper tension between Haskins and Regan that was in the TV series isn't there. Damian Lewis as Haskins just seems to share a lot of sympathy for Regan's approach whereas Haskins in the TV series always had an eye on upstairs, probably because he was a Superintendent not a DCI like Lewis is. And Carter in the series was a sergeant not a DC as in the film. No constable not enough a DCI could afford to live where Carter lives. They use the term 'Officer' and 'gun and badge' and 'You have the right to remain silent' which are all American terms...Did they think that would help them succeed in America when 'Sarge' and 'Inspector' and a different caution would have been understandable? And overuse of Canary Wharf is a sign of low budget and totally unrepresentative of London. It's easier and cheaper to film in CW than in real London and as a result too many films and TV feature the grim background. Carter is a joke, looks like a bum and looks like he couldn't fight out of a paper bag. The music at the end has an arrangement that nods slightly to the great theme of the TV series. I only watched it to the end because I was stuck in a strange country and had paid money to download it. What a lot of rubbish.

My attention switched off half way through the film and I started doing other things. John Thaw was impossible to replace (even though I love Ray Winstone), and Carter just came across as completely dim and uninteresting. Although I love Ray Winstone I found the romantic interest a bit disturbing and completely unbelievable. I watched the whole film but as my attention kept wandering I have no idea what the conclusion of the film was and can't face watching even the second half again! I am a complete Sweeney fan and have watched the old series and films on a number of occasions but I can't say this lived up to the name. Obviously lots of money was spent on the film but it just came across as set pieces and as someone who has spent a lot of time in London, very unbelievable.