‘The Gentlemen’ Review: Netflix Lets Guy Ritchie Go Wild With TV Adaptation of His Own Crime Thriller

The director’s first television project feels like a creative resurgence, but lacks a clear destination

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Kaya Scodelario and Theo James in "The Gentlemen." (Netflix)

Fans of Guy Ritchie’s early British caper comedies were heartened when the filmmaker returned to form with 2019’s “The Gentlemen.” It had his signature twisty plotting, verbal gymnastics, endless array of criminal gangs and cold-blooded class consciousness, almost back up to the entertaining levels of “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels” and “Snatch” after years of bad Sherlock Holmes, Aladdin and King Arthur remakes-for-hire.

While Ritchie’s subsequent features haven’t maintained the momentum, his new, Netflix “Gentlemen” series delivers everything we could reasonably expect, over eight generous and often ingeniously constructed episodes that allow us to savor their rich Ritchieness at a more relaxed pace than a two-hour movie.

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