The Krays Best Movies About The Infamous Gangsters
The legacy of the Kray twins has been dissected, dramatized, and analyzed through a series of films that seek to explain the mechanics of their terror. These movies range from gritty contemporary documentaries to slick Hollywood productions, each attempting to capture the peculiar blend of charisma and brutality that defined East London in the 1950s and 60s. Below is an examination of the most significant cinematic explorations of Ronnie and Reggie Kray, assessing how they navigate the complex intersection of crime, fame, and mythology.
Perhaps the most crucial distinction to make before diving into the filmography is the separation between biographical drama and true crime analysis. Some works prioritize the human story of the twins' upbringing and relationships, while others focus on the sprawling ecosystem of violence and corruption they inhabited. The following films represent the spectrum of this fascination, offering varied lenses through which to view the icons of British underworld history.
**Early Attempts and The Birth of a Myth**
Long before the cultural saturation of the 2015 Ray Winstone-starring epic, the cinematic landscape was sparse regarding the twins. Early attempts were often hampered by budgets and the sheer murkiness of the source material, leading to uneven results that nonetheless laid the groundwork for future fascination.
* **The Krays (1990)**
This is the foundational text of Kray cinema. Starring real-life brothers Martin and Gary Kemp from the band Spandau Ballet, this film is a labor of love that treats the brothers with a strange duality. On one hand, it does not shy away from the viciousness of their methods, showcasing the brutal enforcement tactics that kept the East End in line. On the other, it frames them as romantic figures, doomed by loyalty to their family and their own explosive tempers. The film’s narrative structure follows the classic rise-and-fall trajectory, moving from the gritty boxing halls of the 1950s to the luxurious discotheques of the early 60s and finally to the sterile boredom of prison. The casting of the Kemp brothers brought an authenticity to the physicality of the roles, even if the script occasionally softened the harder edges of their personalities. It presents the Krays not merely as criminals, but as tragic heroes who were simply a product of their time and place.
**The Golden Age of Documentary**
As the twins aged and their empire began to fracture, journalists and filmmakers began to treat them as living history. This resulted in a wave of documentaries that captured the men in a state of decline, offering interviews that were equal parts remorseful and defiant. These films hold a unique power because they depict the subjects as they truly were in their older years, warts and all.
* **The Krays: Dead Men Walking (2001)**
This television documentary, presented by crime journalist John Pearson, is often cited by film buffs as the definitive non-fiction account. Pearson, who had interviewed the twins extensively for a book, brings a skeptical eye to the project. He does not treat the brothers as relics of a glamorous past but as calculating survivors trying to manage their legacy. The film is a masterclass in the true crime documentary format, juxtaposing historical footage with stark studio interviews. The twins speak about their victims with chilling detachment, discussing murders with the same casualness one might use to discuss a football match. It is a sobering reminder that the mythologized "Geordie Gentlemen" were, in reality, psychopathic killers. As Pearson dissects their alibis and contradictions, the film strips away the layers of the legend to reveal the brutal reality of their organized crime empire.
* **Legend (2015) - The Theatrical Counterpart**
While *Legend* is a narrative feature, it is essential to list it here because it represents the current peak of Kray cinema. Director Brian Helgeland framed the film as a tragedy, focusing on the destructive nature of the twins' bond. The casting of Tom Hardy was a gamble that paid off immensely; his performance, involving extensive prosthetics and methodical preparation, resulted in a portrayal that was both physically accurate and psychologically complex. Hardy’s Reggie is the charismatic peacemaker, while his Ronnie is a feral animal, prone to sudden violence. The film’s tagline, "The same man, twice," encapsulates the central thesis: that the twins were two halves of a single, destructive entity. It is a slick, violent, and surprisingly emotional piece of cinema that understands the audience is watching myth-making in real-time.
**The Modern Re-evaluation**
In the wake of the 2015 boom of interest, a number of films have attempted to view the Krays through a modern sociological lens. These works move beyond the simple good vs. evil narrative to examine the conditions that allowed the twins to flourish.
* **My Brother the Devil (2012)**
This is perhaps the most artistically ambitious film on the list. Director Sally El Hosaini does not focus on the Krays themselves but on the world that created them. Set in the early 1970s, the film follows a young British-Egyptian man drawn into the orbit of the twins' former empire. It is a moody, atmospheric piece that explores themes of otherness, sexuality, and the lingering trauma of post-colonial Britain. By focusing on the periphery, the film illuminates the toxic masculinity and racial tension that were the soil in which the Krays grew. It suggests that the twins were not anomalies, but products of a broken system that offered young men only violence or obscurity as paths to power.
* **The Fall of the Krays (2015)**
Released in the same year as *Legend*, this film takes a more documentary-style approach to the narrative. It focuses specifically on the events leading to the twins' downfall, particularly the imprisonment of their former aide, Frank "Mad Axeman" Mitchell, and the campaign to discinter him. The film is notable for its procedural style, treating the story like a police procedural gone wrong. It highlights the shifting alliances within the police force and the government’s desire to see the twins imprisoned at any cost. The movie underscores the inevitability of their fall, suggesting that their very success in monopolizing the London underworld eventually created too many enemies with too much to lose.
**Assessing the Cultural Impact**
The proliferation of Kray media speaks to a broader cultural obsession with the dichotomy of the "respected businessman" criminal. The twins mastered the art of the front, presenting themselves as legitimate businessmen and family men while ordering hits and collecting debts with brutal efficiency. This contradiction is the engine that drives the cinematic interest in their story. As director Brian Helgeland noted regarding his film, the challenge was to understand the mechanics of their relationship without excusing their actions.
The films serve as both entertainment and historical record. They capture a specific moment in British history where class struggle, immigration, and the collapse of traditional industries created a vacuum that figures like the Krays were able to exploit. Whether through the gritty realism of the early drama or the glossy stylization of the modern biopic, these movies ensure that the names Ronnie and Reggie Kray remain synonymous with organized crime in the popular consciousness. They are cautionary tales about power, the corrupting influence of fame, the unbreakable bond of family, and the high price of refusing to bow to the status quo. The screen has been the primary arena where the Krays continue to exert their violent charisma, long after the pubs they once owned have faded into memory.
