Guy Ritchie’s “Mobland’ offers another fresh look at London’s criminal underworld

‘Mobland’ is Guy Ritchie’s umpteenth look at the British criminal underworld, and in the series we find all the characteristics that have made him a success: charismatic characters, a non-linear narrative, dynamic editing, a unique visual aesthetic, and, above all, fast-paced, witty dialogue laced with dark humor. It’s true that director Ritchie only directed the first two episodes, but it’s also true that his influence is such that it paves the way for his successors to follow. He works with Ronan Bennett, a former IRA militant and writer of the magnificent ‘Top Boy’ (2011) and the entertaining ‘The Jackal’ (2024).

The series’ pivotal axis is Harry Da Souza, a character tasked with solving the problems of the Harrigans, a London-based organized crime family that controls drug and arms trafficking in the capital. A fixer for everything, played by a splendid Tom Hardy, who is equally good at settling any hint of dissension—see the brutal opening of episode one—and at getting the clan’s heir out of trouble. In fact, the series was going to be a spin-off of ‘Ray Donovan,’ starring Liev Schreiber, but the project took off so fast that Paramount decided to give it its own identity.

Although the story sounds familiar, the presence of three great figures like Pierce Brosnan, in the role of the psychotic head of the crime family; Helen Mirren, as the wife and true mastermind of it all; and Tom Hardy, elevates the story far above other similar ones. Although it doesn’t reach the level of madness and fun of ‘The Gentlemen,’ nor the depth of ‘Top Boy,’ it does manage to find its own unique tone between stylized spectacle and dramatic tension.

Compared to other series in the genre, ‘Mobland’ straddles the social realism of ‘Top Boy’ and the baroque stylization of ‘Peaky Blinders’. While the former opts for a raw and committed look at the reality of slum life, and the latter for a more ambitious historical and political evolution, Ritchie’s series prefers the artifice, rhythm, and charisma of its characters. It also distances itself from ‘Ray Donovan’ in its treatment of the protagonist: Harry Da Souza is not so much a broken man as a functional, almost mythological figure within the criminal machinery.

Beyond its visual and narrative framework, the series raises interesting themes. Family, for example, is not only the emotional core but also the power structure that governs all decisions. The figure of Helen Mirren as the cerebral matriarch suggests that true leadership is not always visible. Violence, meanwhile, is not gratuitous: it functions as a symbolic language that establishes hierarchies and resolves conflicts. And Harry Da Souza himself, always on the sidelines but indispensable, embodies the tension between loyalty and autonomy, between belonging and being useful.

It’s curious that, with Ritchie directing the first two episodes, these are the ones that take the longest to develop; he simply places the pieces on the board and establishes the roles, so that his successors can then play with them.

Is ‘Mobland’ worth watching?

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