“A
ruthless London gangster is shot
at point-blank range in a night club;
but when he comes round covered in
blood he has somehow been transported
to an abandoned villa in an out-of-time
Italy, with no recollection of getting there,
in the strange and mysterious film Lords
of London...”
CALLOUS NOTORIOUS GANGSTER Tony Lord (Glen Murphy: London's Burning; The
Ice Cream Wars) rules his patch of London with an iron bar, without thought
for the people he hurts or terrorises.
In one short evening he is arrogantly talking over his misdeeds with two members
of his gang when the past catches up with him. He has pushed somebody too far
— and that person is out to get even…
Tony wakes up, covered in blood, in an abandoned Italian farmhouse —
with no recollection of the events that brought him there. On the hill above
him there is a village and, after washing his shirt, he makes his way slowly
towards it.
“A
deep and at times
harrowing film,
the mysterious
Lords of London
is stimulatingly
thought-provoking
and strangely
compelling...”
In
the village, that appears to be lost in time, nobody will talk to him until
he meets the kindly Francesco (Giovanni Capalbo), who owns a trattoria and seems
to know more than he will say. Even Francesco's lovely grand-daughter, Margherita
(Serena Iansiti) does not even acknowledge Tony is there.
Margherita
is kind, caring and loving; but she is seeing an English boy, Terry (Christopher
Hatherall), who seems to make her happy and is obsessed with her. However, unknown
to her, he is a hustler who drinks, gambles and is unfaithful and is also given
to outbursts of uncontrollable rages.
Even the seemingly unprincipled and cold-hearted Tony begins to feel protective
towards Margherita and can see how Francesco is right to be concerned that Terry
is bad news for his grand-daughter, who plans to travel Europe with him.
Francesco alludes to reasons for Tony being in the village of Palombaro and
tells him he will understand soon enough; but it gradually dawns on the gangster
that there is something familiar about the scenes that are being played out
before him. He reflects back on his life; to his childhood and his cruel and
unbalanced father (Ray Winstone: Sexy Beast; Indiana Jones), a violent
bully who terrified him and whose physical and verbal abuse was indirectly responsible
for the death of Tony's gentle mother (Antonia Davies).
Tony is also haunted by his own violent life and as he begins to realise that
fate has brought him here for a reason, Tony also begins to see the error of
his own ways. But is it enough for him to find redemption and peace?
A deep and at times harrowing film, the mysterious Lords of London is
stimulatingly thought-provoking and strangely compelling. Fresh and unusual
in its approach, this tense crime thriller is filmed on location in Essex, England,
and Palombaro, Chieti, Italy.
Lords of London also features: Glyn Grimstead as Kevin; Helen Latham
as Danielle; Joe Egan as Charlie; Mark Adams as Fabrizio; Roberta Lena as Anna;
and introducing a remarkable young man, Cassius Terence Murphy, who plays the
five-year-old Tony. The film is dedicated to the memory of Darren Murphy, Musician
and Brother, 1961-2012.
Original Score is by Milton Reame-James and Jeff Ellis; Director of Photography
is James Friend; Produced by Steve Darts and Glen Murphy; Written and Directed
by Antonio Simoncini.
*Lords
Of London is released on DVD in the UK, courtesy of Kaleidoscope Home Entertainment,
on 6 January 2014. Running Time: 92 Minutes | Catalogue Number: KAL8309 | RRP:
£15.99.
"A deep and at times harrowing film, the mysterious Lords of London is
stimulatingly thought-provoking and strangely compelling"
—Maggie Woods
“A
ruthless London gangster is shot