Layer Cake (2004)

"Layer Cake? Who's in that? Daniel Craig? Nope, never heard of him." – lots of people, circa 2005

Okay, so it's not a quote I can attribute to anyone in particular, but I did hear it a lot after first seeing Matthew Vaughn's enjoyable British gangster flick in mid-2005. Just a few months later, Craig was announced as the sixth actor to take on the role of a certain enduring spy icon, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The actor's new-found fame and hit-and-miss choice of non-Bond vehicles (most recently, the not-quite-good-enough Defiance) makes Layer Cake, Craig's biggest starring role at the time, fascinating viewing. The actor seldom phones in his performances, and this is no exception.

Based on J J Connolly's novel of the same name, Layer Cake sees Craig play an unnamed drug dealer (Mr X) with ambitions to retire on the fortunes he has made in what he considers a legitimate business. However, when Mr X's boss gives him an unconventional assignment, his world is turned upside down by the chain of events it sets in motion.

While the film starts off superficially glorifying the dealing of drugs (though it's not afraid to show the consequences facing drug users), Layer Cake adheres to the gangster flick staple that sees most of its characters shuffling off their mortal coil before the end credits roll, ensuring no-one will leave the cinema plotting an illicit career change.

Vaughn, who produced Guy Ritchie's Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch, delivers a film that's tonally similar to Ritchie's acclaimed gangster flicks: there's a large cast of characters, a convoluted story, an absolutely killer soundtrack, some quotable lines and plenty of violence. However, Vaughn succeeds in toning down the excesses of Ritchie's flicks – the editing is slicker and less obtrusive – offering a tighter story in lieu of an abundance of style.

Layer Cake is a movie that warrants repeat viewings to fully unravel its intricate plot. I watched the film this weekend, having not seen it in a couple of years, only to find myself a bit lost in parts; the story takes unexpected diversions before giving us flashbacks later on to fill in the gaps. It's an unusual storytelling style, and one that requires a bit of extra attention.

The performances are all perfectly adequate, but it's clear that Craig carries the film as the enigmatic Mr X. It's another great performance from the actor. I caught Layer Cake as rumours of Craig's casting as Bond were swirling – this film completely sold me on his talents.

As X's potential love interest, Sienna Miller need only have shown up and looked pretty; needless to say, she effortlessly pulls this off. Similar could be said of the rest of the cast (except for the bit about looking pretty), including Michael Gambon, Colm Meaney and Kenneth Cranham: no-one's a revelation, but no-one lets the side down either. They all do what's required of them.

Which, come to think of it, is precisely what Layer Cake does: it might not reach the heights of Snatch or the brilliant In Bruges, but it ticks all the right boxes as a worthwhile addition to the British gangster genre.