Let me get this out of the way right now. This movie is billed as a cross between “Trainspotting” and “Beavis and Butthead”. There’s some credence to
this since the executive producers are Andrew MacDonald and Danny Boyle, the
producer and director, respectively, of “Trainspotting”. Actually, the
twins of the title are more like a cross between “A Clockwork Orange” gang and Cheech and Chong.
Here’s the deal: In the seemingly sleepy town of Swansea, South Wales, the local big shot is wealth roofing contractor Bryn Cartwright (William Thomas). One day Bryn hires Fatty Lewis for some day work. Fatty is promptly knocked off a ladder, and Bryn refuses to compensate him now that he can’t work. Enter Fatty’s lovably sociopathic twin sons, Julian and Jeremy, played by real-life brothers Llyr Evans and Rhys Ifans. They confront Bryn, who promptly brushes them off. So begins alternating acts of revenge that escalate out of control. One dead dog and several dead bodies later, nobody wins. Somebody just loses more.
The film is really an ensemble piece revolving around Bryn, the twins, and a pair of crooked coke-dealing cops. The first, Greyo (Dorien Thomas) has a good heart and a soft spot for the twins’ sister. The other, Terry (Dougray Scott) is a violent, ambitious, and colossally stupid cop who’s seen one too many Al Pacino movies.
If you expect “Trainspotting”, you may be disappointed. There is no sense of hope or redemption here, just some harsh justice. The pair share a very dark, black humor and an engine of nihilism. The United Kingdom looks pretty crappy if you’re young and lower class. The only joy anyone seems to get is from drugs, joyriding, and karaoke bars. But you do get a peek at the ugliness beneath the friendly veneer of an old Welsh fishing town. Maybe this is their version of “Twin Peaks”.
