Legend (2015 film)

Plot

In the 1960s, Reggie Kray is a former boxer who has become an important part of the criminal underground in London. At the start of the film, his twin brother Ron is locked up in a psychiatric hospital for insanity and paranoid schizophrenia. Reggie uses threats to obtain the premature release of his brother, who is rapidly discharged from hospital. The two brothers unite their efforts to control a large part of London's criminal underworld. One of their first efforts is to muscle-in on the control of a local night club, using extortion and brutal violence.

Reggie enters into a relationship with Frances, the sister of his driver, and they ultimately marry; however, he is imprisoned for a previous criminal conviction, which he cannot evade. While Reggie is in prison, Ron's mental problems and violence lead to severe setbacks at the nightclub. The club is almost forced to close after Ron scares away most of the customers. When Reggie is finally released from prison, the two brothers have an all-out fist fight on the first night after Reggie's release, but they manage to partially patch things up.

The brothers are approached by Angelo Bruno of the Philadelphia crime family on behalf of Meyer Lansky and the American Mafia, to try to interest them in a crime syndicate deal. Bruno agrees to a fifty-fifty deal with Reggie to split London's underground gambling profits in exchange for local protection from the Kray brothers. Initially, this system is highly lucrative for the Kray brothers. However, the results of Ron's barely concealed violence continue to cause problems with Scotland Yard, who open a full investigation of the Kray brothers.

Reggie beats and rapes Frances and she leaves him. Reggie then approaches her to start afresh offering her a holiday to Ibiza. However, she is soon found dead after committing suicide with an overdose of prescription drugs. The brothers' criminal activities continue, and they are unable to thwart the escalating Scotland Yard investigation by Detective Superintendent Leonard "Nipper" Read, who soon arrests Ron. The final scene shows a police squad breaking down the door to Reggie's flat in order to apprehend him.

The closing captions indicate both brothers receiving criminal convictions for murder. They died five years apart, Ron from a heart attack in 1995, and Reggie from cancer in 2000.

Cast

Tom Hardy as Ronald "Ronnie" Kray and Reginald "Reggie" Kray

Identical twins who terrorised London during the 1950s and 1960s.

Emily Browning as Frances Shea

The wife of Reggie Kray. She met Kray at 16 and wed him aged 22 in 1965. She committed suicide in 1967, and narrates the film from beyond the grave.

Christopher Eccleston as Leonard "Nipper" Read

A Detective Superintendent in charge of taking down the Krays.

David Thewlis as Leslie Payne

The Krays' business manager. He considered himself a cultured man and he was sickened by the twins' violence.

Taron Egerton as Edward "Mad Teddy" Smith

A psychopathic gay man rumoured to have had affairs with Ronnie.

Chazz Palminteri as Angelo Bruno

The head of the Philadelphia crime family and friend and business associate to Ronnie and Reggie.

Paul Bettany as Charlie Richardson

Charlie and his brother Eddie were leaders of a notorious south London gang (also known as the Torture Gang), which had a feud and war with the Krays' gang 'The Firm' during the 1960s.

Colin Morgan as Frankie Shea

Reggie's driver at the Kray Firm, and older brother of Frances. Described as a "young and very good-looking man."

Tara Fitzgerald as Mrs. Shea, Frances and Frankie's mother.

Aneurin Barnard as David Bailey

A fashion photographer in the early 1960s.

Paul Anderson as Albert Donoghue

The gofer of Ronnie and Reggie Kray, and Reggie's chief lieutenant.

Duffy as Timi Yuro

Kevin McNally as Harold Wilson

John Sessions as Lord Boothby

Alex Giannini as Antonio Caponigro

Sam Spruell as Jack McVitie

Adam Fogerty as Big Pat

Development

On 12 October 2013, it was announced that Brian Helgeland had written a script and would be directing a film focusing on the life of Reggie Kray who, with identical brother Ronald, formed the notorious Kray twins. Helgeland said the film would concentrate on Reggie's attempts to control the psychopathic tendencies of his younger twin.

Helgeland spoke of hanging out in London with well-known Krays associate Freddie Foreman, saying, "I had drinks with him in his local haunt. When we finished he got up to go and they feted him at the bar. I said to him, 'what about the bill?' and he replied, 'we don't pay."

Helgeland attended the Cannes Film Festival with Working Title's Tim Bevan and Chris Clark to talk to potential buyers of the film and showing test footage of Hardy playing the twins.

Casting

On 18 April 2014, it was announced that Helgeland would write and direct the film, with the shooting being based in the United Kingdom and with Hardy starring as the male leads. Five days later it was stated that Browning was in negotiations for a role as the film's female lead.

Filming

Crews and cast were spotted filming scenes at Falmouth Road, London, St Anne's Limehouse in Limehouse and in the Windmill Walk area around London Waterloo. Filming also took place in Caradoc Street in Greenwich, London in June 2014.

Principal photography started on 12 June 2014. The film was released in September 2015.

Release

Financing for Legend was be provided by StudioCanal, which also distributed the film throughout the territories of the United Kingdom, France, New Zealand and Germany in addition to handling international sales, which started at the beginning of the Cannes Film Festival. On 30 April 2014, Brian Oliver's Cross Creek Pictures acquired the North American distribution rights to Legend from StudioCanal, with a planned 2015 theatrical release through Universal Pictures in its distribution deal with the studio and Oliver also named as a producer on the film. Sales to other territories such as Asia, Africa and much of Europe are being completed. The film was originally set for an 2 October 2015, U.S. release, but it was moved to 20 November 2015.

Legend premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on 12 September 2015 at Roy Thomson Hall.

Marketing

On 13 June 2014, the first image of the film was published, featuring Hardy as the Kray twins. A promotional poster attracted publicity because it made a two-star review from The Guardian appear to be a four- or five-star review by placing the two stars between the heads of the Krays.

Home media

Legend was released on DVD and Blu-ray in the United Kingdom on 25 January 2016 and in the United States on 1 March 2016.

Box office

As of 31 January 2016, Legend has grossed $41,636,816 worldwide; $27,960,112 in the United Kingdom and $1,872,994 in North America.

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 61% based on 146 reviews and an average rating of 6/10. The site's consensus reads, "As a gangster biopic, Legend is deeply flawed, but as a showcase for Tom Hardy – in a dual role, no less – it just about lives up to its title." On Metacritic the film has a score of 55 out of 100 based on 31 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".