MobLand; Tribe With Bruce Parry

“You expect either to dismiss a new Ritchie project as crass twaddle, or to quietly chide yourself for enjoying something that probably is crass twaddle, but has been made with enough mischief and flair for you to stop fussing and have a good time. This, however, isn’t in either category. Ritchie’s direction is … pretty good. Accomplished. Smooth. He flexes various muscles he has built up in previous work, as he takes us to old-school boxing gyms and flat-roofed Isle of Dogs boozers, gentleman’s clubs and Cotswolds estates.”
Jack Seale, The Guardian

“If is all sounds very Guy Ritchie and very The Gentlemen, know that he’s only directing, with the chief writer being Ronan Bennett, the man who most recently gave us the revived The Day of the Jackal. As such, MobLand is less cartoonish — no shotgun-toting men dressed as chickens here — and more sleek and brooding. And while the presence of any one of Pierce Brosnan, Helen Mirren and Tom Hardy wouldn’t necessarily be a guarantee of the finest quality, put them all together and you’ve really got something.”
James Jackson, The Times

“MobLand certainly has potential, and its lack of bombastic bilge is quite refreshing. It takes itself seriously – though not as seriously as its closest comparable series, Gangs of London. The stage is set for an intriguing, bloody gang war and – if it continues in the same vein – could become one of Ritchie’s better works.”
Emily Baker, The i

“I’ll accept that, while Ritchie isn’t for me, lots of people love this stuff. There is a sense of playfulness about his work which can be enjoyable. Unfortunately, nobody has told that to Paramount, which is mis-marketing MobLand with an image of Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan and Dame Helen Mirren looking mean and moody. The title is all wrong too, bringing US gangsters to mind.”
Anita Singh, The Telegraph

“Despite the evident enthusiasm of both Ritchie and Bennett and notwithstanding a starry cast, the collaboration never hits the spot. It lacks the giddy, absurdist wit of Ritchie’s Netflix smash The Gentlemen – it is assuredly a drama, not a caper. Nor does it rise to the social commentary of Bennett’s Top Boy, which showed how crime could offer a fast track to wealth and influence to smart kids from disadvantaged backgrounds.”
Ed Power, The Independent

“As always, Tribe asks difficult questions about what western concepts such as progress and enlightenment really mean. What we are really here for, however, is Parry losing his mind on drugs. It is the same old same old, but it feels good to reconnect.”
Jack Seale, The Guardian

“This is a man who takes the environmental adventure documentary to another level and doubtless makes other TV traveloguers feel a tad beige. Parry’s respect for indigenous tribes and their barely perceptible footprint on the planet is total and he wants to immerse himself in their cultures to show us things exactly as they are, not with any kind of TV spin.”
Carol Midgley, The Times

“The Waihama live a life filled with natural dangers but they have such a connection to their surroundings and to their ancestors that they feel content here. It is fascinating to see how these tribes survive and preserve their way of life while the modern world goes on around them.”
Anita Singh, The Telegraph

“Nobody could accuse him of painting an overly romantic view of life in the Amazon. If anything, he could probably do with soft-soaping it more, because the first episode of Tribe with Bruce Parry makes for often gruelling viewing. Get past it, though, and Tribes is an engaging portrayal of a community trying to hold on to its customs in a modern world changing at breakneck pace.”
Ed Power, The i