The Legend of Barney Thomson
Barney Thomson (Robert Carlyle), is an unhappy sack of man. His primary occupation is that of a barber at Hendersons Barbers, a neighborhood in Glasgow, Scotland. He has been working there for 20 years. He is more introverted than extrovert, which doesn’t work well for his business. His current boss Wullie Henderson (Stephen McCole), the son of James Henderson (James Cosmo), has been moving him away from the attention of the shop. Five men have already been murdered by the man the public has dubbed the “Body Parts Killer”, as the killer sends the body parts to loved ones. The Body Parts Killer is now unknown to Detective Inspector Holdall (Ray Winstone) and Detective Inspector Callum MacPherson, (Kevin Guthrie). Holdall is not satisfied with the results so Chief Superintendent McManaman (Sir Tom Courtenay), takes MacPherson and Holdall off the case. Instead, she assigns it to June Robertson (Ashley Jensen). Robertson, an A-type personality, believes that anyone can do anything right and will be credited for other people doing well. This puts Holdall and Robertson at odds. These two seemingly unrelated paths merge after Wullie informs Barney that his chair is being given to a new barber. This effectively fires him. Barney accidentally killed Wullie in the midst of an altercation. Wullie’s disappearance is reported by MacPherson and Holdall. They begin to believe that Barney killed Wullie and that he was the Body Parts Killer. Both of these beliefs are not supported by Robertson. Barney’s selfish, chain-smoking, and dispassionate mother Cemolina (Dame Emma Thompson) gets into the fray, complicating matters further. She would never have been considered Mother of Year. –Huggo
Director: Robert Carlyle
Actors: Ashley Jensen, Emma Thompson, James Cosmo, Kevin Guthrie, Ray Winstone, Robert Carlyle, Tom Courtenay
Country: Canada, United Kingdom
