Gangster No. 1 DVD Synopsis:
Gangster No. 1 tells the story in retrospect of Gangster, played by both Paul Bettany and, during his later years, Malcolm McDowell. The film shows the young gangster's desire for power as he is introduced into the 'gang' of London gangster Freddie Mays, the Butcher of Mayfair. Once in, he falls for the glamour, the suits, the women, the cars and that desire for power, where he will what ever it takes to become Gangster No. 1.

Gangster No. 1 DVD Picture Quality:
The picture quality on the Gangster No. 1 DVD is excellent. Presented in a 16:9 anamorphic format, the transfer is just about as good as you get. The deep reds, so prodominent in the film are perfect as too are the films washed out look during the films more gritty moments. Scenes to watch out for are the nightclub fire towards the beginning of the film, the ultra-violent torture/ murder scene about two thirds in and the climatic view across present day london. Picture perfect.

Gangster No. 1 DVD Sound:
Dolby Digital 5.1 only, but the sound is good and compliments the film well. Listen out for the boxing match scenes at the beginning, the booming nightclub fire and the scenes where fire roars from behind Gangster to engulf the whole screen. The stand out sound moment comes when there isn't any. As strange as this may sound, the aforementioned torture scene has no music, just the occasional sound effect. As we watch the film from the point of view of Lennie, the gangster being tortured, Gangster throws various objects at the screen (Lennie), before turning to bet the crap out of him. The sound of fist meeting flesh has never been so effective.

Gangster No. 1 DVD Extras:
So the extras. Well, we're treated to a full commentary by director Paul McGuigan, which is reasonably interesting, as too are the behind the scenes features. The deleted scenes obviousley give a little more footage, but nothing special and my opinion is that mean nothing as they aren't shown within the context of the film. I feel that they work best with the director's commentary over the top, but that's not present here unfortunately.

Gangster No. 1 DVD OVERALL VERDICT:
The film was released at UK cinemas back in 200, but only hit US theaters in July 2002. I'm expecting that we'll hear and see more of Paul Bettany, who plays young Gangster, as he is for me, the films biggest and best feature. Bettany has since appeared in such films as A Knight's Tale and the Oscar winning A Beautiful Mind, but for me, Gangster No. 1 is still easily his best work. He is menacing, intense and damn right intimidating in a role in which reminds me of a lot of Michael Caine's earlier film, in particular Get Carter, where the film draws its most inspirarion.Playing the older version of Ganster is veteran Malcolm McDowell, who doesn't really get all that much screen time, but in the the time he does have, he is remarkable, particularly at the end of the fiilm. Gangster No. 1 is not for the faint hearted, not for someone who disliked the more colourful words in the English language, of which there are plenty. But it is a film everyone should see, as Gangster No. 1 is possibly the best British Gangster film of the last ten years.

Paul Heath