Helen Mirren and Pierce Brosnan in 'Mobland'.
Credit: Special arrangement
‘Mobland’ is a high kitsch crime drama set in the highly beautiful Cotswolds. If you are familiar with the campy shenanigans of gangsters in Guy Ritchie’s works (recall the delicious 2024 series ‘The Gentleman’ on Netflix), you can guess how popcorn-worthy ‘Mobland’ is. And yes, you are allowed to not feel guilty for revelling in so much gore. The trouble with ‘Mobland’ is that it is made with such flair and such a wicked wink-wink sense of fun that you begin counting favourites among this morally empty, ruthless, bloodthirsty and witty set. Mind you, these are people who do not blink before cutting up someone to pieces or calling a friend to dinner and shooting him in the heart.
This is the story of Harrigans, a crime family in danger of being has-beens and desperate to hold on to their territory and power. A full-scale war has broken out with the rival Stevenson family over a grisly murder. Headed by Conrad Harrigan (Pierce Brosnan as the erratic Irish gangsta...nuff said), we see the power dynamics of this family along with the running of their ‘business’. Then there’s Helen Mirren playing the evil real boss and Conrad’s wife, Maeve. Mirren expertly walks to the edge of menacing in her portrayal — one wrong step and it could turn cartoonish, but it does not, and that’s where her genius lies. If you are still unconvinced by this formidable pair, there’s the inimitable Tom Hardy. He is Harry D’Souza — fixer, solver, lackey, loyalist — who with his low growl will keep you glued, despite yourself.
(New episodes, Mondays at 12 am.)