Bigga Than Ben is a 2008 English drama film

Drama film

A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...

 written and directed by Suzie Halewood. The film is based on the 1999 Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

n novel of the same name.

It was released on 10 October 2008 in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 and 18 November 2008 in the United States. It stars Ben Barnes

Ben Barnes (actor)

Benjamin Thomas "Ben" Barnes is an English actor, best known for his portrayal of Caspian X in The Chronicles of Narnia films Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.-Early life and education:...

, Andrei Chadov, Ovidiu Matesan and Hero Fiennes-Tiffin

Hero Fiennes-Tiffin

Hero Beauregard Fiennes-Tiffin is an English actor best known for his role as the 11-year-old Tom Riddle, the young version of antagonist Lord Voldemort, in the sixth installment of Harry Potter films, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, released on 15 July 2009 in the United States and the...

.

Plot

This dark comedy from the UK, is a tale of two likeable but wayward young Russian backpacker

Backpacking (travel)

Backpacking is a term that has historically been used to denote a form of low-cost, independent international travel. Terms such as independent travel and/or budget travel are often used...

s who come to London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 in an attempt to amass an easy fortune.

But it’s not too long before Spiker and Cobakka realize that legally, they aren’t going to get very far. So, aided by the dodgy Artash they learn to shoplift from supermarkets, rip off banks, joyride

Joyride (crime)

To joyride is to drive around in a stolen car, boat, or other vehicle with no particular goal, a ride taken solely for pleasure.In English law, joyriding is not considered to be theft, because the intention to "permanently deprive" the owner of the vehicle cannot be proven...

 on the tube

London Underground

The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...

 and turn mobile phones into crack

Crack cocaine

Crack cocaine is the freebase form of cocaine that can be smoked. It may also be termed rock, hard, iron, cavvy, base, or just crack; it is the most addictive form of cocaine. Crack rocks offer a short but intense high to smokers...

.

Cast

• Ben Barnes
  Ben Barnes (actor)
  Benjamin Thomas "Ben" Barnes is an English actor, best known for his portrayal of Caspian X in The Chronicles of Narnia films Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.-Early life and education:...
  
   as Cobakka
• Andrei Chadov as Spiker
• Ovidiu Matesan as Artash
• Hero Fiennes-Tiffin
  Hero Fiennes-Tiffin
  Hero Beauregard Fiennes-Tiffin is an English actor best known for his role as the 11-year-old Tom Riddle, the young version of antagonist Lord Voldemort, in the sixth installment of Harry Potter films, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, released on 15 July 2009 in the United States and the...
  
   as Spartak

Critical reception

Bigga Than Ben received generally favourable reviews from critics. The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes

Rotten Tomatoes

Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...

 reported that 60% of critics gave the film positive reviews.

Cosmo Landesman

Cosmo Landesman

Cosmo Landesman is a journalist and editor and son of Jay and Fran Landesman. With his then wife Julie Burchill, he set up the magazine The Modern Review. The magazine eventually folded, and Burchill left him for Charlotte Raven, one of the magazine's female interns.After the experience Landesman...

 in The Sunday Times

The Sunday Times

The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...

gave the film four stars and said the film was “Dark, funny, charming, fast, immoral, decadent and delightful. The best double act buddies since Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid.”

London's Time Out said, “Makes Dirty Pretty Things look like a government advisory documentary... street-smart un-pc and very funny” and also gave the film four stars.

The critic at the Edinburgh Film Festival stated, “A brilliantly savage black comedy, bursting with raw energy.”