Lawless
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy,
Directed By:
Reviewed by Danielle Muir

[rating: 3.5/5]

The film formerly known as The Wettest County formerly known as The Promised Land formerly known as The Wettest County in the World has finally graced cinema screens.  As Lawless.

The Bondurant brothers are in the moonshine business – and business is booming.  Jack (Shia LaBeouf), Forrest (Tom Hardy) and Howard (Jason Clarke) are sweeping a tidy profit with the grateful townsfolk, living comfortably and peacefully on their property in Franklin County.  Cue the arrival of new Deputy Charlie Rakes (Guy Pearce), threatening to destroy their lucrative distillery careers unless they fork over a portion of their profits.  And the Bondurant’s don’t like that – not one bit.

Lawless doesn’t require much intense brain stimulation to keep up with the plot, which some will find refreshing.  What you see is what you get – and what you see is the tale of three brothers, alcohol, brutal violence and a little romance thrown in for good measure.  This isn’t a serious drama, nor a comedy, nor action.  It sits comfortably in the middle without taking itself too seriously – therefore take it at face value and don’t search for ‘deeper meanings’ or any of that nonsense.

Tom Hardy steals the show as gruff, stone-faced Forrest – the unofficial head of the Bondurant moonshine business.  LaBeouf’s doe-eyed Jack carries the film well, the story told from his perspective as he finds his feet in the family trade, and Clarke is amusing as the aggressive juggernaut brother Howard.  The three actually have good chemistry as a family, and it is fascinating to watch the manner in which Forrest cares for his brothers – tough love is the order of the day.  However the two main females (played by Wasikowska and Chastain) seem nothing more than pretty decorations to the plot, and don’t serve any major purpose.  Guy Pearce’s villainous Charlie Rakes is just, plain, odd.  He’s rotten to the core, and there’s nothing redeemable about him whatsoever, but his appearance is so peculiar that it almost overshadows his personality.  Still – an adequate bad guy in a film that requires one.

The violence in Lawless is fierce and confronting.  The fights are unrelenting as characters just lay into one another, blood spurts from many an angle and bone crunches are frequent.  There are some serious cowering moments to be had from the realism of the fights – an element which came to me unexpectedly.

Again, Lawless is an entertaining, if not forgettable, film about three brothers making moonshine and the lengths they’ll go to protect their family.  There’s laughs, cringes and romance to be had, and there’s not more to it than that folks.

Thanks to our friends at Roadshow we have 20 double passes to giveaway to Lawless. To win a pass send an email to with “Lawless” in the subject line. Include your best postal address. Winners will be notfied by return email.