Film Reviews

March 20, 2026

Thinking back on "Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man," the word that keeps coming to mind is "solid." This is a satisfactory follow-up—and presumed conclusion—to the once-cult but now immensely popular TV series, which ran for six seasons on the BBC between 2013 and 2022. Just as they were in the show, the performances and characterizations are strong; the presentation is deep and vivid; and there are complicated social and interpersonal dynamics at play. Plus, the film doesn't possess the ostentatiousness we thought it might after a four-year gap from the time the series ended to "The Immortal Man"'s release on Netflix (after a brief stint in theaters). Given the show's large and very loyal following, it would have been fair to assume that creator Stephen Knight, who produced the film and penned the screenplay, would cater too much to fan enthusiasm and simply give us what we wanted to see, i.e., more of the same, but "The Immortal Man" tells its own, self-contained story, one that's interesting and thoughtful.

What's more is that "The Immortal Man" makes its universe accessible to "Peaky Blinders" neophytes. Knight's script is focused on being a formidable piece of historical fiction than merely an elongated episode of the show. Of course, it utilizes fans' knowledge bases of what came before it, but director Tom Harper and editor Mark Eckersley are mindful about keeping nostalgia and past references in a good balance with the conflict at hand, supplying the film with just enough exposition to newbies and longtime fans alike.

What was always fresh and intriguing about "Peaky Blinders" is that it took place during that not-often-explored time between World War I and World War II. It was during this era that the show's volatile anti-hero, Thomas "Tommy" Shelby (Cillian Murphy), reeling from shell shock after having served in the trenches and underground tunnels during the supposed "Great War," became an opportunist and created a street gang called the Peaky Blinders with his three brothers. Despite Tommy's tenuous mental faculties and morally questionable proclivities, not to mention him being trigger-happy and addicted to nicotine, booze, and women, he managed to turn the Blinders' small yet powerful faction into an empire in the ashen and depressingly bleak city of Birmingham, England. Given Birmingham's poor economy and low morale at the time, the show convinced that even a relatively average-sized and skinny man like Tommy could be feared and oversee a criminal dynasty, under which the Blinders' lawbreaking ventures ranged from racketeering and weapons smuggling to violent assault and murdering police officers.

When the film opens in 1940, Tommy is living in isolation, well beyond the Blitz that’s currently pulverizing Birmingham. He's pensive and guilt-ridden about his past, having lost almost all his family, including older brother Arthur, whom we only see in flashbacks. He spends his days quietly writing his memoir, and his only human contact is his loyal assistant, Johnny Dogs (Packy Lee), with whom he shares a fenced estate with horses and a backyard cemetery. Occasionally, Tommy's younger sister, Ada (Sophie Rundle), his last surviving sibling, drops by to give him updates on the criminal residue he left behind, including the reckless behavior of his illegitimate son, Duke (Barry Keogahn), who now heads the Blinders.

Along with the Blitz, the movie uses for its narrative framework the real-life scheme by the Nazis to destabilize Britain's economy by flooding it with millions of dollars of counterfeit money (which would have included an ultimately unexecuted plan to drop said money from an airplane overhead). The plot finds Duke acting as a conduit for a British Nazi loyalist named Beckett (the always reliable Tim Roth). Duke, a pompous, self-proclaimed gangster who uses violence as a shield against his own insecurities and need for love and acceptance, is pressured into submitting to Beckett's whims because Duke thinks his role in the counterfeit operation will give him greater leverage in the world of organized crime, not unlike his absent father. In a lesser film, this might have been all there is to Duke, and that either he and Tommy would have a stand-off or that they would eventually join forces and rule together as mob bosses, but "The Immortal Man" seeks to make their situation more nuanced.

Duke's dear Aunt Ada fears her nephew is going astray, and she beckons Tommy to intervene, and she isn't the only strong female figure to do so. Tommy is also visited by Kauolo Chriklo (Rebecca Ferguson), the twin sister of Duke's deceased mother, Zelda. Her appearance reminds us that Tommy and his family are descendants of Gypsies, and that Tommy subscribes to the idea that curses may have shaped the tragedies in his life, including the death of his daughter Ruby. Perhaps his answering the pleas of Ada and Kauolo could help save Duke from a similar life of grief and despair.

"The Immortal Man" functions less as an "it all comes down to this" climax of the show and more as an understated denouement, one that's more drama than action oriented. This works in the film's favor because it plays to the strengths of the cast. Murphy, a true chameleon of an actor, all but sheds his most recent—and very strong—roles ("Oppenheimer," "Small Things Like These," "Steve") and brings back to life the mercurial Tommy, who's older, wiser, and less impulsive. Of all the actors working today, Murphy is one who has mastered the art of communication through silence and observation, and "The Immortal Man" gives him plenty of subtle opportunities to harness this talent. The film doesn’t seem like it’s in a hurry.

Keoghan is just as strong because of the way he convinces us Duke is questioning and internalizing a lot of his decisions. The Duke character is neither written nor realized as one-note; he’s not a simple wannabe hoodlum who only wants to inflict pain or better his father's legacy. He's more complicated than that, and we credit Harper and Eckersley for sitting with Duke just as much as Tommy, holding on his face and wandering gaze for a few extra beats so that we might assess his inner turmoil. It helps that Keoghan bears such a striking resemblance to Murphy, especially in the eyes and cheekbones, because when their characters finally meet, their physical likeness adds to their history and chemistry.

For all the ways "The Immortal Man" involves us, it doesn't quite make us believe it would have been worth a trip to the theater, although that attitude likely stems from our knowing it is based on a TV series, one that peaked during the pandemic when we were all stuck inside. That said, it's a superb streaming movie, and its production values aren't lost on us, just as they weren't on the show. Cinematographer George Steel, who also worked on the series, uses wide shots especially well to capture the grimy, heavily polluted, and now war-torn Birmingham, with its blackened mud roads and soot-stained infrastructure, courtesy of production designer Jacqueline Abrahams. The constrained urban locations and sets contrast effectively with the pastoral grounds of the dilapidated and dusty Avening House where Tommy resides. For a "small" movie, we notice and appreciate its visual details.

A lot more happens in "The Immortal Man" than I've chosen to reveal, but the narrative makes use of Tommy's old friends Charlie Strong (Ned Dennehy) and Hayden Stagg (Stephen Graham), who don't just have a cameo but play a pivotal role in the plot. Collectively, the film tells an involving story of history, drama, action, and the supernatural, and what makes it so engaging is that it delivers on all these fronts faithfully and harmoniously. We care about the time and place, what's at stake if the Nazis prevail, and the multi-dimensional characters and their complex relationships. And given that it’s "Peaky Blinders," a property known for its violent nature and signature anachronistic music (featuring songs by Grian Chatten, Antony Genn, and Martin Slattery; Teardrop; and of course, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds and their iconic song, "Red Right Hand"), we're surprised by how restrained it all feels. The film possesses the right amount of flare without going over the top, whereby moments such as Tommy putting on his trademark scally cap and trench coat in slow motion feel earned and not necessarily flashy, a sign the filmmakers didn't set out to make a simple crowd-pleaser but a more full-fledged movie anyone can watch, take seriously, and be entertained by.