The fatal attraction

Cert 15, Running time 114mins

Despite being brought to us by the man behind the Hangover series, this larky crime caper more closely resembles something made by Martin Scorsese. From the violence, through the sweariness, to the 1970s soundtrack, it might be the best film the celebrated director never made. Expect laughs, gunfire and an awful lot of disco music.

Based on a true story, the plot revolves around down-on-his-luck massage therapist David Packouz (Miles Teller) whose fortunes seem to be on the up when, by chance, he meets old friend Efraim Diveroli (Jonah Hill).

It turns out the pal is attempting to wheedle his way into the arms business,

thanks to a new kink in the law. With a huge $300million contract for weapons put out to tender by the US government, the pals find themselves crossing paths with Bradley Cooper’s slick-but-odious quartermaster.

From there, we head into the darkest, most dangerous depths of Middle Eastern politics, where either fortune or fatal wounds await.

Director and co-writer Todd Phillips who, besides The Hangover gave us Old School, has delivered a slick and enormously entertaining thriller recalling the likes not just of Scorsese’s back catalogue but the slick, devil-may-care tone of the Ocean’s Eleven remake.

Shadows of Casino and The Wolf Of Wall Street linger, however.

That said, David and Efraim aren’t characters to be admired so much as to be observed, squint-eyed with a sense of mounting horror.

The latter, in particular, is a terror to behold, with Hill giving perhaps his best performance to date.

Teller, so memorable in Whiplash, can’t really compete as Hill turns up his energy and steals the show.

And as with that story, you know greed will wreck things in the end.