In the post war British gloom two twins (plus an older brother) start building a criminal empire from their East London home. Based on a true story.
One of these films that was begging to be made because it featured so many staples of popular cinema, but was going to be very hard to make accurately because the audience would have to transported and educated about another place and another time. In truth the film is about as good as is possible given the acting talent (two ex pop stars!) and budget.
The problem with the Krays is that - violence to one side - they didn't actually do a lot. They simply lived by extorting money from those (criminals) that did, which left a lot of time for plotting school yard wars, drinking and watching gangster films (that inspired them and therefore this!)
They were, in fact, simpletons who cashed in on fear and common distrust of the forces of law and order. Equally one of them (Ronnie) was both a homosexual as well as criminally insane - although undiagnosed at the time of events. What a mixed up, confused and juvenile world for any film maker to make any sense out of. Thankfully there are plenty of books which tell a straighter and more detailed version of events.
There is a tradition in the UK of portraying men as weak and feckless and the women as being the real brains and controlling parties. Mother Kray (Billie Whitelaw) remains a puzzle - a dominant force and yet unable to control their excesses. They shrug their shoulders - men are children with bigger toys, they say. From toy guns to real ones?
The film rolls along cleanly and comes to a truthful - to history - climax with an attempt at some cod psychology to explain it all away. The problem is that I simply don't believe this Freudian view. Not a word of it.
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