Just so...so bad

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

This film was pure trash. Not the worse film ever. If it were to be broken down, the acting was good enough to get the job done but the script was SO out there and so stupid that one was left thinking, "Where did my life go?" Even Vanessa Redgrave~ whom I love (and is the reason I watched this) was wasted. Utterly wasted. She didn't even leave an impression. The directing was so distant that non of the characters left me much of anything, but to see Redgrave leave nothing. Her part was nothing. She was good as a mean boss but that was it. Do depth and she's given depth to small roles~ see Venus and Atonement. I would not waste my time and was upset to have spent the $5 on this movie...I wanted it back. No returns. Skip the film. It'll only bring you grief...and boredom.

Somewhat confusing story about a Londoner (Vinnie Jones) who gets involved in a web of intrigue centering on newly discovered Charles Dickens manuals. I spent much of the movie wondering how much of the stuff about Dickens himself was true; I would like to know more about Charles Dickens as a person.Other than that, the acting kept the movie afloat. Aside from Jones, Derek Jacobi, Julie Cox, Vanessa Redgrave and Jason Flemyng turn in very good performances. It's just that I felt that the movie didn't tell as much about Charles Dickens as I would have wanted to hear. Pretty good otherwise.

Let me admit up front: I know the guy who wrote and directed this movie. I like to think I can be objective about it nonetheless, but in an effort to counteract any bias I might feel, I'll try to base this review (and my rating above) on two fairly objective factors.First, take a look at the cast list: Vanessa Redgrave, Derek Jacobi, and Vinnie Jones. Think about how many movie offers each of them must have at any given moment. You don't get one actor like that (let alone three!) in a low-budget film made by an unknown unless they think there is something special in both the script and the director. Look, there's no reason you should care what I think about this movie--I'm just some anonymous guy on the Internet--but if Vanessa Redgrave, Derek Jacobi, and Vinnie Jones think this film is worth their while, then you should probably pay attention to them.Second, at a time when the British film industry was in something of a slump, the filmmakers behind "The Riddle" not only made their movie (with an amazing cast), they got it into the hands of 4.5 MILLION PEOPLE. This would be an impressive accomplishment for any film, but for a quirky, ambitious indie movie, it's unprecedented. And as an aspiring independent filmmaker, I find that inspirational.

The film is very ambitious - probably too ambitious - in that it tries to portray two worlds, one of modern London and one in Victorian London, plus mixing detective thriller and supernatural.Vinnie Jones plays a rough diamond sports hack trying to figure out some murders along the Thames while also investigating the appearance of a previously undiscovered book by Charles Dickens.Vinnie is a likable hero in a Sam Spade sort of way, though it is hard not to wait for him to thump someone in his usual role. In this case he in more bashed than bashing, but his relationship with Julie Cox, playing a police PR, is engaging and he does not seem too phased by rubbing shoulders with Vanessa Redgrave and Sir Derek Jackobi. While Redgrave's role is a rather fleeting cameo, Sir Derek has a double role as a vagrant and as Charles Dickens. I enjoyed the theatricality of his Dickens role, though in the early stages of the movie the hopping from Victorian to modern tended to get in the way of both plots.While the film shows a few signs of being shot on a shoestring and has one foot in 50s B Movie and the other in more mystical territory, the plot and performances are mostly engaging, particularly a scene between the journalist and the tramp in a Thames-side cave.The supporting cast included a lot of familiar TV faces from days gone by - Gareth Hunt from the New Avengers, Mel Smith, PH Moriarty from The Long Good Friday and others, with some good cameos along the way.