First of all, you might as well just watch trailer 2.  They released two trailers today (apparently someone at Disney thought that things were moving too slowly), the second one seems to have all the same footage as the first one plus a nice big intro with Alice’s backstory.

This is a gloriously good trailer.  I was actually quite tired of the teaser soon after I saw it, I love Johnny Depp and the character of the Mad Hatter, but there are so many other characters I wanted to see.  (Also that line about being Mad as a Hatter makes no sense).  This trailer is all kinds of awesome.  All the animals look great.  We saw the White Rabbit before, but we hadn’t seen the March Hare or the Dormouse, they all look suitably abused and ragged.  And Helena Bonham Carter looks great too, I didn’t think I’d get used to the whole big head thing so easily.  It’s quite obvious that Tim Burton plays favorites with his cast, having both Helena Bonham Carter and Johnny Depp in almost all of his movies, he still casts them quite well.  He knows what he’s doing even if it doesn’t always look like it.  I’m also enjoying Anne Hathaway as the White Queen, she looks appropriately crazy herself.  And Mia Wasikowska will be terrific, she is a great actress hopefully she doesn’t grow up all ugly or anything.  I could go on forever about this cast, Crispin Glover, Matt Lucas; not to mention the voice cast, Christopher Lee, Alan Rickman, Stephen Fry.  It’s going to be too good.

Click on the first poster to watch the first trailer, click on the second to watch the second (again, I recommend the second trailer.

Trailer 1:

From YouTube (don’t believe the title of the video, this is the first trailer).

Or try Yahoo.

Or try Facebook.

Or try Zap2it.

Trailer 2:

From the Official Site.

Or try the Official Site (Flash).

Or try Coming Soon (This site has both but the UK trailer is the one you want).

- izi

This is not going to be released until March 5, 2010, so we at realitypod.tv feel proud to have the trailer hosted on our site and I am really impressed. For those of you who love Johnny Depp, you should be screaming with anticipation as we wait to see the full movie! We have a massive line up of stars in the film.. check out the list below.

Director: Tim Burton Executive producer: Peter Tobyansen, Chris Lebenzon
Producers: Richard D. Zanuck, Joe Roth, Suzanne Todd, Jennifer Todd
Co-producers: Katterli Frauenfelder, Tom Peitzman

Cast: Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, Crispin Glover, Matt Lucas, Marton Csokas, Tim Pigott-Smith, Lindsay Duncan, Geraldine James, Leo Bill, Jemma Powell, Mairi Ella Challen and Mia Wasikowska as Alice
Voice Cast: Stephen Fry, Alan Rickman, Michael Sheen, Timothy Spall, Christopher Lee, Paul Whitehouse, Barbara Windsor.

Enjoy!

IT’S no secret that I’m a huge fan of Caroline Aherne’s work.

She knows what the important things in life are.

Including family, laughter and love.

Her latest comedy drama is ITV1’s The Fattest Man In Britain.

Last month I spoke to cast members, including Timothy Spall, and co-author / producer Jeff Pope.

You can read today’s MEN feature here.

With a photo gallery here.

For those who want to know ever more, read on:

Georgie Godwin (Spall) eats truck loads of Vienetta ice cream

But aspires to what he calls Haagen-Dazzy.

Starting the day in his Rochdale semi with a huge bowl of Coco Pops.

“Do you want a Mars Bar,” asked Tim at the start of the Q&A in London, after we had watched the film on a big screen.

Acting in a fat suit on a hot TV set, did he actually shed pounds during filming?

“Unfortunately I didn’t lose weight because I didn’t move around very much,” he replied.

“Funnily enough, I’d be around this food all the time, munching, Quavering, Quavering. Vienetta was a challenge. I think I had to eat three of those.

Keep smiling: Georgie Godwin

“So it put me off my grub,”

Keeping cool?

“I had water pumped all through me, and a little touch of Chablis in the afternoon.
“We did laugh a lot, mainly because of Bobby Ball. He was fantastic from day one.”

The two real life doubles for Georgie’s close-ups?

“There’s very clever moments in it with the cuts, where you see real flesh and so on. We had two guys who were lovely and determined. And they were prepared to do it.

“There was a real sense that we were doing something that was unusual and about somebody with an affliction, but it wasn’t like we were doing something in isolation because there were big people around.”

Has playing the role changed his attitude towards obese people?

“There are a few moments in it where Georgie says, ‘If it wasn’t for Morris, I’d still just be a big, fat, horrible man. Morris has given me dignity. Morris had given me a celebrity. I give people joy.’

“It’s delusional because the story tells you that fundamentally his almost pathetic attempts at delusional celebrity are increasing his demise. They’re all involved in something that they don’t really get. It’s this young girl who comes up and sees it with the purity of innocence and says, ‘You’re killing yourself.’

“This is a tragic-comedy. But so many people in the modern world do live a delusion and we’re encourage to live a delusion and an illusion. This easy buy-in, because you’re a freak or you’re something, you don’t have any particular talent…I think Georgie thinks he has a talent. I think he believes he’s actually entertaining.

Frances Barber as Janice

“It’s risible, it’s laughable and it’s amusing, because they’re fat – there’s nothing funnier than fat. But in reality there is always that double thing. We like to laugh at fat – ‘I’m a joke’ – but underneath there’s a self-loathing there.

“It’s a story, it’s not attempting to be a tract on delusion. But I think it is about how we can all mystify ourselves with our own stupidity, really.”

Everyone over-indulges over Christmas, so will this be a warning to people?

“No, because I think people will go, ‘At least I’m not as fat as that.’”

Is the UK catching up with America or even passing it in the obesity stakes?

“Well let’s hope so, we don’t want to lag behind them,” joked Tim.

“I don’t know how many people have been to Disneyworld? You do see the most huge families of people in America trundling down to the various rides, munching on things.

“Obesity is a real problem, isn’t it? It becomes a real problem when we have a National Health Service, because the NHS is paid for by our taxpayers and our National Insurance. We might have a more heightened view of obesity here than we do in America because Americans have insurance, in which case you can eat yourself to death. Here we all have a collective idea about who deserves various cures from the NHS.

“This film tries to tell the story poetically, as well. Georgie’s language is poetic as well as received and as well as misguided and delusional. But there is a poetry within it that we understand and we have a history of this working class world that we live in.

“Right way, way back, from Dickens, earlier Shakespeare and right up to Alan Bennett, this wonderful sense of language that we have in this country will always, always be something that explains and makes people more noble.”

Bobby Ball told us about playing the role of Morris:

“Caroline and Jeff had me in mind when they wrote it. It made me feel very special. It’s just a big honour. It blew my socks off, really.

“I met them in a hotel in Manchester – and they said, ‘Would you like some lunch?’ And I said, ‘No, I’ve just had two boiled eggs,’ which I have every morning with my wife Yvonne. Caroline can’t believe I said that.”

Although he had acted before in Last Of The Summer Wine, Heartbeat and The Royal, Bobby admits he was nervous working alongside the likes of Tim and Frances.

Bobby Ball: Turning Japanese

Frances also helped him through his first ever screen sex scene.

“I said to her, ‘I’m really nervous about this. What do I do?’ And she went, ‘Get in, and get on with it.’ It was fantastic.”

Frances recalled: “One of our first scenes was a bed scene and he was such a gentleman. He didn’t want to lean on me so he was holding his arms like an Olympic gymnast. I said to him, ‘Just lean on me, I’m a cushion, it’s fine.’”

Bobby spoke about one scene which he just couldn’t get right.

“I couldn’t remember my wife’s name, Valerie, and I was getting more annoyed with myself. I felt not worthy because I’ve got Timothy Spall and Frances and Aisling there. I couldn’t do it.

“I did it about five times and I just kept missing my wife’s name, so they had to re-take it. And we were shooting from over Tim’s back and I just looked at him, his eyes made me look down and on his leg he had a note printed which said, ‘The ******** wife’s name is Valerie.’ So I was fine then.”

Frances was asked about obesity, having spoken to real life gentle giants on set.

“It’s an addiction. It’s like alcoholism, it’s like any form of addiction. I can’t imagine how awful it must be when you’re trapped in this cycle of simply not being able to do anything about it.

“Every woman that I know on Earth who’s been a bit overweight and a bit not, it’s a cycle that we all hate. When your clothes don’t fit properly you feel miserable and uncomfortable and ugly. So what it must be like for those poor, afflicted people?”

Jeff Pope explained how he and Caroline had created the script:

“It was all written in her kitchen of her house in Timperley. It was a labour of love. Lots of arguments, lots of furious rows. I think I met possibly the only person more stubborn than me, was Caroline. But we got there in the end. I’m very proud of the finished piece.

“I worked with Tim on a film called Pierrepoint and we started talking about this then. That was two years ago.

“This was a very interesting project because Caroline didn’t direct it, which is, I think, apart from Mrs Merton and Malcolm, the only piece that she’s been associated with that she’s not directed herself. And even then in Mrs Merton and Malcolm, she obviously was Mrs Merton.

“So she deliberately played quite a hands off role on set because I think she wanted to create the space for David Blair to be able to direct it without her on his shoulder, which was very difficult for her.

“I think we were all very grateful to her for the way that she worked out that was the only way this was really going to work. So she was quite hands off on set. She met everybody and obviously we’d slaved away at the script for a couple of years.”

I asked Jeff – apart from producing a piece of entertainment, what was it that he and Caroline wanted to say in this piece?

“Almost the first line that we settled on – I don’t know if it’s just us or just me or maybe a lot of writers do this…you find a point and work towards it and away from it. And that point was, ‘If I’m not the fattest man in Britain, then what am I? I’m just a fat man.’ That was what really interested us. That’s what got us excited.”

*The Fattest Man In Britain is on ITV1 at 9pm this Sunday (Dec 20)

The Fattest Man In Britain

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Chris Griffin Totally Looks Like Timothy Spall From Rockstar

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Pictures by: dunno source Look-alike by: stocker2000 via Totally Looks Like Builder

Harry Potter: Ultimate Emo Boy!

(Warner Brothers) Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Michael Gambon, Jim Broadbent, Alan Rickman, Helena Bonham Carter, Maggie Smith, Tom Felton, Robbie Coltrane, Julie Walters, Timothy Spall, Ralph Fiennes, David Thewlis. Directed by David Yates

Being a teenager is hard enough without additional burdens. There’s the rampaging flood of hormones that makes a life-or-death situation of any emotional trauma. There’s the constant war between childish comforts and the call of growing up. Throw on top of that the responsibility of being The Chosen One and well, it sucks to be Harry Potter.

After the fallout of the events of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry (Radcliffe) has become a bit of a celebrity. The tabloids have gone so far as to wonder out loud if he isn’t The Chosen One, the wizard meant to end the threat of Valdemort (Fiennes) once and for all. For Valdemort’s part, his Deatheaters are no longer acting covertly but openly causing damage in both the Wizarding and Muggle worlds.

Dumbledore (Gambon) is increasingly spending time with Harry, preparing him for the battle to come. He takes young Harry on a mission to find Horace Slughorn (Broadbent), a bon vivant and former Potions teacher at Hogwarts. The idea is not just to offer him a job, but to bring him close to Dumbledore. Slughorn has a memory of young Tom Riddle (Frank Dillane) that may prove to be crucial in defeating the Dark Lord once and for all, but it is a memory that Slughorn is reluctant to pass on; you see, the contents of that memory may also ruin Slughorn forever.

In the meantime, Harry and his friends Hermione (Watson) and Ron (Grint) are struggling with the adolescent hormones big time. Ron is the target of Lavender Brown (Jessie Cave), while Hermione has her eye on Dean Thomas (Alfie Enoch) and Harry himself has come under the scrutiny of Ron’s sister Ginny (Bonnie Wright). Things can be very tangled up at that age.

In the meantime, the Dark Lord has an infiltrator at Hogwarts – Draco Malfoy (Felton). He is being protected by Professor Snape (Rickman), the former Deatheater who has been pressed into service by Draco’s mother Narcissa (Helen McCrory) and the evil Bellatrix Lestrange (Bonham Carter). What Malfoy’s mission is – and what he is doing with the cabinet in the Room of Requirement – is also central to Harry’s fate and the fate of the Wizarding world.

This is a much darker Potter than any of the other films in the franchise, and you definitely get a sense that the confrontation that has been building since the first movie is almost upon us. While the Wizarding world intrudes on our own world much more in this movie (London’s famed Millennium Bridge is destroyed in a fit of spite by the Deatheaters), the movie is Hogwarts-centric. However, you get less of a sense of it as a school as much as you do of the place of it. Harry is not attending classes so much as brooding in the hallways. We see much more of the social interactions between the students than we do instructions in the art of magic, and that’s a good thing.

Radcliffe, Watson and Grint have turned out to be solid, first-class actors who hold their own with world class talents like Rickman and Smith. Wright has also turned out nicely, making the romance between Ginny and Harry one of the sweetest things in the movie and nicely authentic. Watching Ron and Hermione turn towards each other is much more like watching your sister kiss your brother.

The effects are magnificent and the story is compelling. So why didn’t I like this movie more? Much of the middle part of the movie seems directly aimed at pleasing the legions of Potter obsessives who demand that the books be faithfully followed to a literal “T”. Characters literally make cameo appearances – Wormtail (Spall) appears merely to open a door without saying a word, then disappear from the film entirely. That kind of thing proves to be distracting.

The craft that went into the making of this movie is extraordinary. Kudos must go to the special effects and art direction crews; this is a world that is well-lived in and fleshed out and much of the credit must go to J.K. Rowling. She has created a world so detailed in her books that the movie crews have a great template to work with. The sequence in the underground cavern in which Dumbledore displays some of the powerful magic he is capable of is extremely well-done, edge-of-your-seat kind of stuff, spectacle at its finest.

This is a solidly made movie that while not up to the standards of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, is still certainly worth seeing. I suspect that you will probably like it more than I did – for some reason, it didn’t draw me in the way other Potter movies have. Perhaps it is the dark, foreboding tone of the movie that makes the Wizarding world much less attractive to be in, unlike the first movies when it was a delightful place.

If there is light, then there must also be its absence as well, and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince peers into that aspect firmly. This is not meant to be a movie for small children, but a movie for putting aside childish things. Harry Potter is growing up, and perhaps I’m not ready for that but as with all children, they grow up whether we want them to or not.

REASONS TO GO: Spectacular special effects sequences and art direction make this a feast for the eyes. Well-acted and the romance between Ginny and Harry is extremely sweet and believable. Michael Gambon does some of his finest work of his career.

REASONS TO STAY: The tone is exceedingly dark and foreboding. There is a lot of unnecessary business that while pandering to the Potter extremists, proves to be distracting to the rest of us.

FAMILY VALUES: There are many frightening images and incidents that may be too intense for smaller children.

TRIVIAL PURSUIT: Author J.K. Rowling makes a cameo appearance as the subject on the cover of a gardening magazine that Dumbledore picks up in Slughorn’s flat.

NOTABLE DVD FEATURES: The documentary J.K. Rowling: A Year in the Life (which aired on U.S. cable) depicts the last year of the writing of the final book in the Harry Potter series during which the author revisits her past; there is also a series of “One Minute Drills” in which the cast are given sixty seconds to describe their character’s history, personality and other personal details  before time runs out. Finally, there is a sneak peak of the “Wizarding World of Harry Potter” at Universal Studios’ Islands of Adventure theme park opening in the Spring of 2010 in Orlando, Florida.

FINAL RATING: 7/10

TOMORROW: Armored

Desert Flower is the movie based on Waris Dirie’s autobiographical book of the same name. It was directed by Sherry Horman and stars Liya Kebede, Sally Hawkins and Timothy Spall.

Plot:
Waris (Liya Kebede) grows up in Somalia. When she’s supposed to get married to an old man at the age of 12, she flees her family and makes her way through the desert and – over various stops – finally to London. After years of struggling there, she meets Marylin (Sally Hawkins) and gets some footing. Some time later, she’s discovered by photographer Terry Donaldson (Timothy Spall) and becomes a supermodel. Soon she reveals that she’s been circumcised and starts a crusade against the practice.

I remember reading Desert Flower about 12 years ago and I was very impressed with the story (though the quality of the book is not that high). The movie does a good job chronicling Dirie’s fascinating life, focussing on her struggles as an illegal alien and then as a human rights activist more than on her modelling.

The practice of female circumcision is atrocious and it’s always good to remind people of that. It seems to be forgotten regularly. The movie focusses on that aspect – of Dirie’s growing up in Somalia and just slowly realising how mutilated she actually was. And rightly so. While the rags-to-riches aspect of Dirie’s life is of course wonderful, it’s a fairy tale (albeit one that really happened) and female circumcision is the reality.

Sherry Hormann does a good job combining these two elements, though, telling the fairy tale but letting the reality mantle it all.

Of course, it was incredibly lucky that they got such a good cast. Liya Kebede not only fulfills the visual aspect [that woman is beautiful!] but can act as well. Timothy Spall was very good [didn't make me go PETER PETTIGREW! once]. But the real star of the movie was Sally Hawkins. Such a comedic talent. She makes two gestures and says a word and I’m laughing my ass off.  

Though the comedic aspect doesn’t make light of the story, it is desperately needed so that you don’t cry all the time. [I almost did anyway.]

Though I usually don’t propagate watching a movie instead of a book, this time I can only recommend it. In the movie, you get all the important things from the book and the quality is much better than Dirie’s writing. And I think that it’s important that a lot of people see this film and educate themselves (in an entertaining way) about female genital mutilation.

So go ahead and watch it. In the meantime, you can look a little more at Liya Kebede.

James Pomerantz recently posted on Movies About Photography. Not surprisingly I added Standard Operating Procedure to the fray in the comments section.

Not a movie, but every part cinematic, I implore you to watch Shooting the Past by the stellar Stephen Poliakoff. It is a three part mini series. Back when it was first released (1999) I watched it alone in my parents house for three Thursdays running … even refusing trips to the pub to watch it undisturbed. It’s a glorious, delicate piece of television; tragic, persuasive and eventually uplifting. One of those that leaves you sat still and quiet five minutes after the credits have rolled.

The premise is simple. Big, faceless American corporation sends business-like minion (Liam Cunningham) to oversee the break-up and sale of an old photography archive in a mid-sized, regional, musty museum. The museum is staffed by an eccentric archivist (Timothy Spall) and a strong, caring custodian-director (Lindsay Duncan).

The staff must – over the course of a few days – convince the administrator to turn his focus from the bottom-line value of the collection to the intangible value of stories, histories and truths within the photographic collection, thus transforming his heart and ultimately his decision on the fate of the collection.

Spall and Duncan are a delight … Cunningham less so, but an American accent is difficult to do. In defence of Cunningham, his performance a decade later in Hunger (another of my favourites) was remarkable.

So, there you are. My most heartfelt recommendation.

I earnestly urged someone to watch Shooting the Past a few years back, but the last time I was round at their place I saw it still wrapped in cellophane in the DVD cupboard. That hurt. Shooting the Past should be relished.

The Damned Utd is based on the novel of the same name which, though fictional, tells the story of Brian Clough’s short reign as Leeds Utd manager in the 1970’s.

I enjoyed the film a lot and the way they handled both showing archive footage and creating their own was really clever.

The problem I have is that the film contains ‘real people’ (Brian Clough/Don Revie/Peter Taylor) but puts them in fictional scenarios in real life events.

It’s confusing for instance to see Clough go back on his word to manage Brighton and take the Leeds job when in reality “Brian Clough did not accept the job at Leeds United whilst on holiday in Majorca after accepting the Brighton & Hove Albion Job. He left in October 1973 and went on to manage Brighton for 32 games with little success, finishing 19th in the old Third Division and losing to non-league Walton & Hersham 4-0 in the FA Cup.” (Wikipedia, link at bottom of review)

And that kind of ruined The Damned Utd a little bit for me, which is a shame because it’s a wonderful effort from all involved.

The three main actors Michael Sheen (Clough), Timothy Spall (Peter Taylor) and Colm Meany (as genius as ever in his role as Don Revie) put in stunning performances and make the entire thing so believable at times it was almost like watching a documentary.

And maybe that’s where the problem lies with regards to the factual issues.

The Damned Utd makes you believe all this happened by pretending to be a historically accurate film (or at least not properly mentioning it’s a work of fiction) and it stings a little to find out the story has been spun to fit in with the direction of the novel/film.

Definitely worth seeing as an entertaining film but, regardless of the impression it gives, bear in mind a lot of what you’re watching didn’t actually happen – or at least didn’t happen in that context.

Rating: 8/10

NOTE:

For more info on the inaccuracies of the film see here.

What Is It?

The 4th installment of the super popular series about an average boy, growing into teen and adult hood while attending a boarding school for “witches.” The series seems to hook you with the fantasy aspects and keep you with the true to life coming of age stories. Here, we are back at Hogwarts School and the Tri-Wizard tournament will pit one wizard from England against one from Russia and one from France. Some how the Goblet has selected an extra name, and it is….

How was it?

If you have been enjoying the series so far, you will not be disappointed. This one is older and darker, and is still progressing. The effects are better (Particularly the transformations as compared to the Werewolf from the last film.) I loved the scene where the dragon crawls across roofs like a bat scraping across a brick wall.

They still have their “Live action cartoon” feel, and include long dialog to explain all the new rules for the world so that some of this makes sense.

Still, I’m about sick of, after 3 years in this world, Harry still being surprised by things being “odd”. Though more than that, it’s sad that such interesting and potentially complex characters as Snape and professor McGonagall populate this world, but instead of digging deeper, they just introduce new characters to skitter across the screen and disappear into cameo obscurity.

(Can we please just keep one “Defense Against the Dark Arts” teacher for more then one film?)

Hey, anyone for a quick game of “Name that Tolkien Influence”?

SPOILER – I have thought it cheesy that in the last three, everything was constantly life threatening and no one died…. Good job

Is It Good for Kids?

There are potential nightmares lurking through the graveyard of this film. The Death Eaters are mild, compared to the (Spoiler) re-birth of the noseless Voldermort.

Though more than this, is the sudden burst of sexuality in this film. We get a point of view shot of Ron checking out the back ends of several French witches. Later he comments on the fact that he usually only looks at them and only from behind. We get Hermony in a low cut dress, and Harry taking a bath, while a teen age girl ghost watches him, and comments on bubbles disipating for a better view. She later cuddles up with Harry in the tub, though he doesn’t seem interested.

Yes, as kids get into their teen years, they are going to start to notice girls and be curious. It would just be nice if we could see this delt with without giving acceptance to checking people out like they are meat, or putting the characters into sketchy situations (like the tub).

You can find out more about what’s on the screen from Screenit.com

What About Spirtual Themes?

The big hub-bub about Harry, in the “Holy Huddles”, has been the use of witchcraft. Yes, the Bible condems it. Yes, it is flaunted in these books and movies and the only people who think poorly about witchcraft are given a horrid sounding name, and are charactures of unthinking hatred, fitting of a Roald Dahl book. The magic here is from an undetermined source. (This differs from “Lord of the Rings” where all power is attributed to either the Author of Evil, or the Creator and Ruler of Good.) Yes, the last movie included a “spell” that kids could “perform” to better their lives (Ridiculos). Yes, this uses the term witch, and yes, this could cause a child to look into or stumble upon the fastest growing religion in American High Schools. But that is not the point of these stories.

That said, the craft here is all very much educated by years of cartoons and comics. The magic is often arbitrary. (Kids can make a student cough up slugs, but can’t make Ron’s “Dress Robes” stylish.) Magic is not the point of these stories.

There is a kid here, who is in fact, growing up infront of us. He is going through the same struggles of bullies and girls and friendship and akward ages that we have all or will all face. It his how he deals with teachers, rules and homework that provides the true messages and meanings of Harry Potter. Though there may be plenty to be worried about in the past three movies (See my combined review of the first three) this one is free of the concerning morals that plague it’s predicessors. Infact, the only major moral concern I see here, is the objectifying of boys and girls.

Here Harry is shown as self sacrificing, friendship is preserved (maybe to the extent that it is putting forth an existential philosophy, but not overtly.) And growing up is about change.

Your Recommendation?

If your children are into the Harry Potter Series, like anything else, talk to them about it. Talk to them about what they liked and didn’t, as well as, the choices made by characters and our choices in our world.

If they are not, though this may be the “safest” of the series, it is a series and I don’t think we can deal with it as a seperate componant. Yes, the poor moral choices that plague the other films (and the two books of the series that I have read) were not present here. But there was not a turning away of those choices either, and I think we can expect more of it in the future.

Furthermore, unless you are very “into” the characters, the movies will probably lag for you.

If you or your children are just itching for fantasy children’s entertainment that can thrill adults as well, pick up the book “The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe” and get ready for a worth while, “Is it as good as the book?” debate.

LIFE IS SWEET av Mike Leigh (1991)
Med Jim Broadbent, Alison Steadman, Jane Horrocks, Claire Skinner, Timothy Spall, Stephen Rea, David Thewlis, Moya Brady

SPOILERVARNING

Det kanske delvis beror på musiken – som påminner om den lätt igenkännbara dragspelsmusik man så ofta hör i franska filmer – men det är inte primärt därför Life Is Sweet känns som en Jacques Tati-film men skruvad 90 grader åt ett annat håll eftersom den är gjord i England och skruvad ytterligare 90 grader åt ytterligare ett annat håll eftersom den är gjord av Mike Leigh. Det känns mycket sannolikt att Mike Leigh varit inspirerad av Jacques Tati, men till skillnad från Jacques Tati gör han inte en komedi som med förundrade ögon betraktar en värld som är fullkomligt absurd – vår – utan en dramakomedi som betraktar en väldigt engelsk och inte alldeles funktionell familj med en svårt dysfunktionell dotter, som lider av både bulimi och klinisk depression.

Life Is Sweet balanserar förbluffande väl på gränsen mellan drama och komedi, och är alltså båda delarna. Med lyckat resultat är det sällsyntare än man kan tro och de flesta filmer som försöker kantrar omgående. Men här utspelas komedin inte bara mot en klangbotten av tragedi, filmen övergår i och slutar som hoppfull tragedi. Det här är något som Mike Leigh kommit att göra även senare, men kanske inte så uttalat som här.

Man borde bli tokig på Alison Steadman, familjens mamma, som kulsprutesmattrande spottar ur sig som hon själv tycker väldigt skojiga kommentarer till hennes och familjens vardag i en engelsk förort och oavbrutet flamsskrattar åt sina egna skämt, men det blir man inte. Tvärtom blir man oemotståndligt charmad. För dels framstår hon med sitt goda humör som så rörande hjärtevarm i en tillvaro där skälen att vara rörande hjärtevarm är få, dels får man så småningom en känsla av att det här är hennes sätt att klara av tillvaron, att det ligger mer i flamsskrattet än man i förstone kan tro. Den misstanken bekräftas, för det här är inte den flamsigt ytliga människa man ser under nästan hela filmen, det är en empatisk och insiktsfull människa, med oväntat stor förståelse för inte minst den svårt problemfyllda av sina tvillingdöttrar – spelad med en säreget överdriven stil av Jane Horrocks, en stil som borde bli ett självparodiskt magplask men som tvärtom träffar mitt i prick. Jag är inte alldeles på det klara med hur Mike Leigh och Jane Horrocks lyckats så väl med att så skickligt balansera på rätt sida om även den gränsen, men det har de. Och därför känns det desto märkligare att Timothy Spalls insats som familjens vän Aubrey, uppenbart en människa med flera bokstavsdiagnoser, spelas så överdrivet att han framstår som en lyteskomisk pajas utan trovärdighet.

Mike Leigh har alltid befolkat sina filmer med vardagens människor, men inte så sällan med dem av vardagens människor som har problem som gör dem i någon mening dysfunktionella. Jag tror att han utforskar den sidan hos nutidens människa – och ur alla möjliga synvinklar, från oförmåga att skaffa barn och det livstrauma det innebär för ett par som verkligen vill ha barn (inte i den här filmen) till ovanstående nämnda bulimiska, kliniskt deprimerade unga kvinna till en änglamakerska (också en annan film), och så vidare – helt enkelt för att olika former av dysfunktionalitet är väldigt mycket mer utbredda än någon egentligen låtsas om eller för den delen ens tror. Mike Leigh söker sig in bakom väggarna hos utvalda invånare i den enorma, moderna, anonyma storstaden, där sådana väldiga sjok av befolkningen på ytan är så strömlinjeformat lika varandra, där individerna som väller fram i mångtusenhövdade folkmassor på väg till jobbet varje morgon vid en hastig anblick kan förefalla utbytbara mot varandra. Så är det förstås aldrig och när Mike Leigh väljer ut någon eller några av individerna – för det mesta en familj – ur den väldiga folkmassan och tränger innanför huden på dem, visar han oss drama efter drama, med komiska men oftare tragiska inslag, som ständigt pågår runt omkring oss i den verklighet där vi lever, men oftast innanför hemmets väggar.

Mitt i allt detta, mitt i en problemfylld tillvaro som ytligt sett skrattas bort av en flamsig Alison Steadman, vågar folk även drömma och därför mot bättre vetande, som man skulle kunna tycka, exempelvis som hennes man Jim Broadbent köpa sig en rostig gammal husvagn till överpris i avsikt att förvandla den till en ambulerande korvkiosk. Den drömmen ter sig säkert inte särskilt storslagen för nästan någon av oss, för även om den med hårt arbete går i uppfyllelse är den inte rimligen något som står särskilt högt upp på de flesta människors önskelista över livsmål – men är den verkligen så ynklig?! Är det inte det faktum att man fortfarande förmår drömma som är det väsentliga?! Spelar det någon större roll vari drömmen består?!

Det som kanske mer än något annat griper tittaren i Mike Leighs filmer är den respekt och förståelse han visar de på ytan anonyma men i själva verket mycket älsk- , ömkans- och beundrandsvärda människor i vars liv han tränger in, och den respekten och den förståelsen förmedlar han på ett sätt som gör hans filmer till betydande filmkonst.

Kör hårt,
Bellis

Brian Clough endures a televised one-on-one encounter with Don Revie in "The Damned United".

(Tom Hooper, 2009)

November 22, 2009

by Joel Crary

To call football a religion in the UK wouldn’t be far off, entangled as it seems to be in age-old church rivalries and characterized by the devoted support of a working class who would rather sing hymns at the stadium than in a pew on Sunday. “You know it’s illegal to sign someone on the Sabbath,” Manager Brian Clough (Michael Sheen) reminds his assistant Peter Taylor (Timothy Spall) as they approach the front door of a prospective defender. Maybe just a handshake now, to stay on the side of both divine and state law.

It was Clough’s decision to sign Dave Mackay (Brian McCardie) that brought Derby County out of the depths of the English league’s second division in 1969, or so he explains to Sam Longson (Jim Broadbent), the team chairman. Longson believes that the players pull rank on management, as do the fans, for that matter. He has a point. Clough could care less about the fans. He has his sights set on getting the best of Don Revie (Colm Meaney), the manager of the successful first division multi-award-winning Leeds United.

Revie seems to have it all together. Before Leeds’ first lottery match with Derby, he and his players deboard their bus wearing suits and signing autographs for a collection of excited fans. Clough has carefully set out glasses and a wine bottle with the label facing just the right way. He knows everything about Revie, explaining to Peter that they’ve lived almost the same life. He knows the shops he probably frequented while living in Middlesbrough. Tonight, he will be Revie’s equal at last. And then Clough is snubbed. He spends the game watching Revie coach Leeds animatedly, himself sitting quietly, wondering what Revie’s got that he doesn’t have.

“The Damned United” gets by on showing hardly any football action. It isn’t about the players, after all. Clough talks to his Derby men like a prison warden in contrast to Revie’s fatherly demeanor. A former player, he knows the moves but has no gift for relating to his men. He takes on new players like shapeless mounds of clay that he can mold to his liking, never stopping to understand their personalities, only knowing where each man should be according to his ability and what he should do in order to guarantee victory. For a while, things work out for Brian Clough. He’s getting to where he believes he deserves to be.

Then, he is offered the position of manager of Leeds United. Revie has left the opportunity for Clough to move in, though he doesn’t want him as a successor. Peter doesn’t believe that it’s a good idea. So much of a team’s success, it seems, is in correlation to where the men come from. They know each other, know the community and understand how to function as a unit. Clough sees it as an opportunity to become known for being an even better coach than Revie. He is ravenous for fame, fed by moments such as Muhammad Ali calling him out on international television. Yet when he coaches the men, there is a clear disconnect. Leeds is loyal to Revie. So are the fans, who belt out his praises en masse in song at the matches.

Had he not been fired as Leeds manager, “The Damned United” may have served as Clough’s profane epitaph, a curse hurled at all he could never be able to achieve. Director Tom Hooper, who helmed the recent “John Adams” miniseries, positions Sheen in his shots as though he is constantly being outmanned by the upper part of the frame. In one sequence, Clough can’t bear to watch the outcome of a Derby match that could make or break his expensive efforts to revive the club. The light from the stadium shines through high windows, bringing him to squint as he tries to go on crowd reaction. Other shots put him on the far left or right in varying degrees of closeup. It is clear that Hooper and screenwriter Peter Morgan believe that Clough is two men, not one. Without Peter by his side, there is an empty hole in Clough’s life that prevents him from achieving his lofty goals, or at least being able to set more reasonable ones.

Sheen is fantastic in the film, at turns cocky and childishly defeated, and it’s great to see Meaney play a medium-profile legend. The film builds to a first and final confrontation between Clough and Revie that underscores the reality of what Clough tried to achieve in climbing the ranks of the first division. Was all of his pettiness really only sparked by a handshake? I wanted to see more of Clough’s behaviour as a father to his two sons for comparison, given that the film puts such an emphasis on the familial bond that football teams take pride in defending, but it’s clear that his approach is flawed. The league may canonize a man for bringing his club competitive glory, but he’ll be damned if he doesn’t answer to those who made him what he was.

“The Damned United” is showing at the Bytowne Cinema through Thursday, November 26th.

The real Clough and Revie meet in an interview for Yorkshire television:

Harry Potter und der Halbblutprinz sorgen für eine zauberhafte Zeit.
Jack Bauer überbrückt im Serien-Special die nächsten 24 Stunden.
Gewinnspielfrage zum Kinofilm Paranormal Activity…

Der Winter lässt noch auf sich warten und die Eichhörnchen bunkern fleißig ihre Beute. Rüsten auch Sie sich für die kalte Jahreszeit und füllen Ihre Wunschliste mit knackiger Filmkost.

Verschieben Sie den Winterschlaf! Harry Potter und der Halbblutprinz sorgen für eine zauberhafte Zeit. Jack Bauer überbrückt im Serien-Special die nächsten 24 Stunden und bleibt hellwach, denn sein Auftrag ist eine wirklich “harte Nuss”.

Werden Sie im Magazin selbst zum Nussknacker und lösen die Gewinnspielfrage zum aktuellen Kinofilm Paranormal Activity hier!

Harry Potter und der Halbblutprinz

In ‘Harry Potter und der Halbblutprinz’ schließt sich Voldemorts Faust immer enger um die Welt der Muggels und der Zauberer – sogar in Hogwarts ist man nicht mehr so sicher wie früher. Harry vermutet die Gefahr in der Burg selbst, doch Dumbledore konzentriert sich eher darauf, Harry auf die Entscheidungsschlacht vorzubereiten, die nun bald bevorsteht.

Gemeinsam suchen sie nach einer Strategie, mit der sich Voldemorts Verteidigungslinien durchbrechen ließen. Zu diesem Zweck engagiert Dumbledore seinen alten Freund und Kollegen, den ahnungslosen Lebenskünster Professor Horace Slughorn. Denn Dumbledore ist überzeugt, dass Slughorn mit seinen guten Beziehungen über entscheidende Informationen verfügt.

Unterdessen bekommen es die Schüler mit einem ganz andersartigen Gegner zu tun: In den Mauern der Burg spielen die Hormone der Teenager verrückt. Harry fühlt sich immer stärker zu Ginny hingezogen – doch Dean Thomas geht es genauso. Und Lavender Brown hat sich Ron ausgesucht, aber nicht mit Romilda Vanes Schokolade gerechnet!

Währenddessen kocht Hermine vor Eifersucht, will aber ihre Gefühle auf keinen Fall zeigen. Nur ein Schüler bleibt inmitten dieser knospenden Romanzen völlig unbeeindruckt. Er will unbedinigt Eindruck machen – und sei es mit dunklen Machenschaften. Während alle Welt verliebt ist, bahnt sich eine Tragödie an, die Hogwarts unwiderruflich verändern könnte.

Darsteller: Michael Gambon, Robbie Coltrane, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Jim Broadbent, David Thewlis, Warwick Davis, Richard Griffiths, Timothy Spall, Fiona Shaw, David Bradley, Julie Walters, Gemma Jones, Daniel Radcliffe, Mark Williams, Helen McCrory, Emma Watson, Tom Felton, Rupert Grint, Devon Murray, James Phelps, Alfie Enoch, Jamie Waylett, Oliver Phelps, Matthew Lewis, Josh Herdman, Bonnie Wright, Dave Legeno, William Melling, Ralph Ineson, Natalia Tena, Katie Leung, Shefali Chowdhury, Afshan Azad, Jessie Cave, Evanna Lynch, Hero Fiennes-Tiffin, Tony Coburn, Suzanne Toase, Amelda Brown, Nina Voelker, Robert Knox, Georgina Leonidas, Anna Shaffer, Tom Moorcroft, Johnpaul Castrianni, Rod Hunt, Freddie Stroma, Scarlett Byrne, Louis Cordice, Isabella Laughland, Teresa Mahoney, Frank Dillane, River George, Charlie Bennison, Dean Garnham.

Serien-Special
Sein Name ist Bauer, Jack Bauer. Die Zeit, die ihm bleibt:
Vierundzwanzig Stunden.

Video Buster stellt Ihnen eine Serie vor, die echtes Suchtpotential besitzt. ‘Echt’ ist in der TV-Produktion 24 weniger die Handlung, die sich von Staffel zu Staffel überbietet, echt ist zunächst einmal ein geniales Konzept: Eine Serie in Echtzeit, in der wir Zuschauer 60 Minuten unseres Lebens auch 60 Minuten des ereignisreichen Arbeitsalltag eines Mitarbeiters der Anti-Terror-Einheit CTU (Counter Terrorist Unit) begleitet.

Auf einigen Feldern ist ‘24′ mit derben Flüchen und ungeschminkten Gewaltszenarien zur TV-Hauptsendezeit ebenfalls einzigartig. Kritische Stimmen wurde immer dann laut, wenn es um Folter-Darstellungen und Waffeneinsatz zur Erzwingung der moralisch oder zumindest politisch legitimierten Ziele ging, in der inzwischen 8 Staffeln umfassenden Serie (im Januar 2010 startet Episode 1 der Season 8 in den USA).

Hauptdarsteller Sutherland gewann einen begehrten ‘Golden Globe’ und ‘24′ einen ‘Emmy’ für die beste Drama-Serie. Zu Recht? Urteilen Sie selbst und steigen Sie jetzt mit einem wahren Helden der TV-Unterhaltung in Boot: CTU’s Jack Bauer wartet auf Sie, zwar nicht ganz in Echtzeit, aber garantiert echt spannend! Weitere Informationen gibt es hier!

Drama sobre la corte británica

Helena Bonham Carter encarnará a la Reina Madre

Foto: Reuters	Ampliar

LOS ANGELES, 17 Nov. (Reuters/Ep)

La actriz británica Helena Bonham Carter interpretará a la futura Reina Madre en The King’s Speech, un drama sobre los entresijos de la corte británica en el que compartirá protagonismo con Colin Firth (Mamma Mia!, La última legión) y Geoffrey Rush (Piratas del caribe, Munich)

La cinta, que según apunta una información publicada por ‘The Hollywood Reporter’ recientemente comenzó su filmación en Inglaterra, relatará la relación entre el rey Jorge VI (Firth) y el logopeda Lionel Logue (Rush), quien ayudó al monarca a perder su tartamudeo y liderar a Gran Bretaña durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial.

Bonham Carter encarnará a su consorte, la reina Isabel, quien se convirtió en Reina Madre tras la muerte prematura de su marido en 1952. La esposa de Tim Burton no deja la corona, ya que interpreta a la Reina de Corazones en la versión de Alicia en el País de las Maravillas que dirige su esposo.

El elenco de la cinta también incluye a los actores Jennifer Ehle, Guy Pearce, Derek Jacobi, Timothy Spall y Michael Gambon. El cineasta Tom Hooper (The Damned United) dirigirá el filme con un guión escrito por David Seidler. Su estreno está previsto para mediados del próximo año.

Un film del 2009, regia di Tom Hooper, con Michael Sheen / Jim Broadbent / Timothy Spall / Joseph Dempsie. Prodotto da Sony Pictures Releasing Italia ()

Drammatico

Nell’Inghilterra degli anni ‘60 e ‘70, Brian Cloughs rimase per 44 giorni manager della squadra di calcio inglese del Leeds United. Dopo essere stato allenato da Don Revie, il Leeds si distingue per uno stile di gioco cinico e aggressivo che verrà modificato dal lavoro di Brian Clough, il quale aveva ottenuto uno straordinario successo come allenatore dell’Hartlepool e del Derby County .

Left to Right: Timothy Spall as Peter Taylor and Michael Sheen as Brian Clough. Photo taken by Laurie Sparham © Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics, All Rights Reserved.

The Damned United details the brief  44 days of  Brian Clough’s stint as manager of Leeds United, then England’s top football team, after having taken the Derby club from nowheresville to national and even international pre-eminence in football.

I mean, um, soccer…because I’m American.  Sorry.  Work with me, here.

The Damned United, suprisingly enough, isn’t sports flick.  Not really. We aren’t tugged through the suspense of a crucial play or career-altering blooper.  The action happens off-camera.  Team training scenes (while strong) are brushed in as supporting material for the central subject of the film: the personal and professional relationships that impacted the world of British footballing, centering on four forces in particular:

1.  Don Revie, the brilliantly successful manager of Leeds United, who appoints Clough as his successor.  Colm Meany (American audiences will recognize him from such Irish smash hits as The Commitments and Into the West) shows us a Mr. Revie who earns the (grudging) respect of his enemies, and takes no prisoners.

2.  Sam Longson, the frugal chairman of the Derby football club (played by Jim Broadbent of  Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and The Young Victoria), and the board of the club et al.

3. Peter Taylor (Timothy Spall…aka Peter Pettigrew in the Harry Potter movies, among many other credits), Clough’s indispensable partner in crime.

4. And of course, the dyanmic Brian Clough himself (played by none other than Michael Sheen of Frost/Nixon and The Queen).

If any of these four wobble, down goes the tabletop. This balancing act provides endless comic opportunity for the film, and Michael Sheen’s ability to embrace Clough – good, bad, witty, or irritating – never fails to shine. His natural screen charm is perfect for Brian Clough, who runs on vision, down to the fumes.

Director Tom Hooper is also a man with a clear vision.  He crafts an insider’s look for those who remember this era in British national footballing.  The film focuses on the secret behind-the-scenes strategies, posturing, and aggression that never made the news. I can only  imagine what a confection this movie might have been for me if I’d had a personal history with these events. Indeed this is my only point of disconnection with the film – the feeling that I just don’t, and won’t, get the inside joke.

This is not to say the movie is hard to follow plot-wise; Hooper cleverly connects the dots for us.  Of course, he also throws in some heavy shadows over Sheen’s face and some colorful lighting that teeters on the edge of Bali Hai syndrome…for which I can forgive him in view of the creative ways he uses the cramped and dingy interiors of the Derby football club to reflect, even express, Clough’s dreams for himself and his players.

Clough can be a tough character to like, at times, but Hooper manages to get us on his side throughout.

In short, The Damned United is a fun ride with extremely witty actors and a visionary director.  Laughs guaranteed.

-Margaretta Lantz

2012

(Columbia) John Cusack, Woody Harrelson, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt, Danny Glover, Thandie Newton. Directed by Roland Emmerich

From the director of The Day After Tomorrow comes another end-of-the-world epic, making Roland Emmerich the modern-day Irwin Allen (younger folk not familiar with the name can google him). The Mayan calendar warns that the world will end in December, 2012 and there are several scientists – some fairly notable – who took that seriously. Not seriously enough however, as global cataclysmic mayhem ensues on a blockbuster scale.

See the trailer here.

For more on the movie this is the website.

Rating: PG-13 (for intense disaster sequences and some language)

The Damned United

(Sony Classics) Michael Sheen, Timothy Spall, Colm Meaney, Jim Broadbent. In the late 1960s, the most powerful football club – soccer to us Yanks – in the UK was Leeds United. They were a formidable dynasty with some of the top players in the sport and managed by Don Revie, one of the most revered coaches in the game. When Revie’s greatest rival Brian Clough was tapped to take over the United coaching reign, it would usher in one of the most notorious coaching situations in the history of the game.

See the trailer here.

For more on the movie this is the website.

Rating: R (for language)

Pirate Radio

(Focus) Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bill Nighy, Kenneth Branagh, January Jones. In the swinging 60s, British rock and roll bands were changing the face of music and culture forever, yet the English people were only permitted to hear two hours a week of rock music. A group of enterprising and passionate DJs took to the high seas to launch their own pirate radio stations, free of government restrictions and rules. The British government didn’t take kindly to the open defiance of their authority and did everything in their power to shut them down. I’m told this is loosely based on actual events of the time but regardless the soundtrack to this movie is killer!

See the trailer here.

For more on the movie this is the website.

Rating: R (for language, and some sexual content including brief nudity)

Things are going to be a little different around here… without Don.

– Brian Clough

The Damned United was not on my radar whatsoever. I never heard of the film until Mike from Big Mike’s Movie Blog reviewed it. I heard that people were digging this movie. Typically, I don’t like sports films, especially soccer. This movie tries to delve into the genius of England’s greatest soccer coach, Brian Clough, but it barely scratches the surface.

In July 1974, Leeds United fail to make the World Cup that year. The most successful manager of the club’s history, Don Revie (Colm Meaney) leaves his post to manage English National Football Team. His successor is the opinionated Brian Clough (Michael Sheen), who has some choice words about Leeds in the past. His new team does not like the new guy.

The action flashes back six years earlier, the days that he was with a fledging team of Derby County with his assistant manager Pete Taylor (Timothy Spall). During random drawing of which teams would square off, second division Derby is selected to play first division Leeds. The Derby team is humiliated by a loss when Leeds team implements dirty tactics to win their games.

This begins a rivalry between the two clubs. If Derby wants to be the best, they have to beat the best by any means necessary. Brian wants to have a player that could help them reach the top of the second division. The management goes with the over the hill, Dave Mackay (Brian McCardie). This swift action causes strife with chairman of the team, Sam Longson (Jim Broadbent).

His new strategy works as the club move up the second division to capture the cup. The nation takes notice about his accomplishment. Revie wants to humiliate Clough as much as he can.

Michael Sheen gave a very good performance in this movie. Some parts of the movie were very good with the self-realization that we good. I wish that the movie focused more on that. It mainly focused on Clough’s obsession with getting back at Revie. When the movie was over, I thought, “That’s it.” It felt like a hanging chad.

Judgment: There is a good movie here. You have to fish for it.

Rating: ***1/2

 Mi relación con el deporte es prácticamente nula: ni lo practico ni me interesa demasiado verlo practicar a otros. Sin embargo, ello no es óbice para que no pueda disfrutar de una película cuyo tema principal tiene que ver con el fútbol.

“The Damned United” (2009) nos cuenta una parte de la carrera deportiva de Brian Clough, uno de los entrenadores ingleses más importantes del que no había oído hablar en mi vida. Sin embargo que nadie se lleve a engaño, porque la película de Tom Hooper no es ni por asomo un biopic, sino que pretende ser algo mucho más profundo.

En 1967 Brian Clough (ex jugador profesional) y su segundo entrenador Peter Taylor se hacen cargo del club de fútbol Derby County, que lleva una década hundido en la segunda división inglesa, y consiguen su ascenso a primera un año después. En las siguientes temporadas el Derby no sólo mantuvo su plaza en la división de honor, sino que conseguiría su primer título liguero en 1972. Todo parecía marchar sobre ruedas hasta que Clough comienza a tener problemas con la directiva y termina fichando por el todopoderoso Leeds United en el que será cesado 44 días después de firmar el contrato.

Visto así parece un poco raro que una película centre gran parte de su metraje en el fracaso de su protagonista, pero es que es precisamente ahí donde está el verdadero interés de esta cinta o, más bien, el relato de las causas de ese fracaso es lo que convierten “The Damned United” en una de las mejores películas del género deportivo que he visto en mucho tiempo. De hecho, una tiene la sensación de que ese embalaje deportivo es una simple excusa para hablar de qué es lo que ocurre en los vestuarios y en los despachos de los directivos. Es interesante colarse en esos lugares, que nos están vedados, de la mano del ambicioso Brian Clough.

Todo se inicia cuando el Leeds United de primera división, entrenado por el mítico Don Revie, acude al campo del modesto Derby County para jugar una eliminatoria. Clough, que está entusiasmado con el encuentro, se siente despreciado por Revie y, a partir de ese instante, se dedicará en cuerpo y alma a vengarse de la supuesta afrenta. Es así como se nos narrará cómo Clough (egocéntrico, pagado de sí mismo, orgulloso y soberbio, pero tremendamente optimista) hará lo imposible para lograr sus propósitos. En este sentido “The Damned United” se convierte en una película más interesada en analizar la fascinante y compleja personalidad de Clough que en ensalzar sus gestas deportivas.

No os asustéis al pensar que esta película narra sucesos que muchos desconocíamos o que sus protagonistas nos son tan ajenos que, probablemente, nos perderemos entre tantos datos. La trama en la que se sustenta esta cinta puede ser seguida por cualquier persona sea aficionada al fútbol o no sin temor a aburrirse, más bien todo lo contrario.

Tom Hooper (más curtido en el mundo de la televisión) lleva a cabo un excelente trabajo dotando a su película de un ritmo que nunca decae y de una realista ambientación, aunque hay que tener presente que cuenta con la inestimable colaboración del guionista Peter Morgan responsable de títulos tan conocidos como “El último rey de Escocia” (2006), “The Queen” (2006), “Las hermanas Bolena” (2008) o “El desafío: Frost contra Nixon” (2008).

Los protagonistas de la citada película son grandes actores británicos que han participado en producciones muy conocidas y que nos regalan unas estupendas actuaciones. Para dar vida al protagonista encontramos a Michael Sheen al que pudimos ver, por ejemplo, encarnando a Tony Blair o a David Frost. Timothy Spall (el Peter Pettigrew de la saga “Harry Potter”) interpreta a Peter Taylor; Jim Broadbent (“Arma fatal”, “Harry Potter y el misterio del príncipe”) al presidente del Derby County; Colm Meany (“Dublineses”, “La jungla 2: Alerta roja”, “The commitments”, “Café irlandés” o “La camioneta”) a Don Revie y Stephen Graham (“This is England” o “Enemigos públicos”) es Billy Bremer, capitán del Leeds.

Rodada con un bajo presupuesto, huyendo de las manidas escenas de las pelis de deportes (cámara lenta incluida), centrándose en lo que vive un entrenador cuando sale de un campo de fútbol, “The Damned United” está pasando casi desapercibida por nuestros cines. Ay, qué poco nos gusta arriesgarnos con productos que no gozan de una machacona publicidad…

Para ver la ficha de la película, pincha aquí.

Briony 

A damned good film. Better yet, a damned good film about football.

See it.

THE DAMNED UNITED (Reino Unido 2.009, 98 Minutos, Drama)
Dirección: Tom Hooper.
Guión: Peter Morgan sobre la novela de David Peace.
Reparto: Michael Sheen, Timothy Spall, Colm Meaney, Jim Broadbent, Stephen Graham, Peter McDonald.
Fotografía: Ben Smithard.
Música: Rob Lane.

Valoración: 8/10

Sinopsis: Brian Clough ha hecho campeón al modesto Derby County y es uno de los técnicos jóvenes mejor valorados del país. Su talento le ha llevado a convertirse en el nuevo técnico del poderoso Leeds United, un equipo de grandes aspiraciones que lo ha ganado todo de la mano de su anterior entrenador, que tras 16 años en el cargo abadona su puesto para ser seleccionador de Inglaterra. Todos esperan lo mejor de Clough, pero lo que no saben es que este odia al Leeds, un equipo que según él lo ha ganado todo gracias a su habilidad para hacer trampas y no por su juego. Clough se propondrá cambiar radicalmente a su peor enemigo y hacer del Leeds un equipo ganador y, además, honorable.

Crítica: Cuan solitaria y desoladora es la profesión del entrenador de fútbol, siempre incomprendido, ignorado en los éxitos y crucificado en los fracasos. Cuando algo falla él es el culpable, cuando algo funciona el mérito es de otros. The Damned United habla de todas esas sensaciones de banquillo y vestuario a través de la historia de Brian Clough, leyenda del deporte rey por méritos deportivos, desde luego, pero también filosóficos. En una época en la que el fútbol empezaba a abandonar los campos embarrados, los viejos estadios de paredes desconchadas y los banquillos astillados, para abrazar el neón y el corporativismo, Clough enseñó a todo un deporte el significado de la palabra victoria. Para Clough, genio con genio e ingenio, el fin no justificaba los medios. Estos eran un fin en sí mismos. La forma de alcanzar la gloria era tan importante como la propia gloria. Haciendo uso de una inteligente narración en la que es imposible perderse a pesar de sus continuos saltos en el tiempo, Hooper nos cuenta la vida y obra de Clough durante sus 44 días al frente del gigantesco United, un equipo imparable con pies de barro al que las luchas de egos terminaron por derrumbar. Tras las bambalinas del mayor espectáculo del mundo, The Damned United y un exquisito Michael Sheen hablan de esa pasión surgida de las entrañas que hace de este deporte algo más. Notable drama con una gran dirección, un guión consistente y un reparto a gran nivel -en especial su citado protagonista- que hará las delicias de los fans del balón. Siempre y cuando visualicen este como una forma redonda deshilachada de cuero desgastado por el barro, las patadas y las redes contrarias, y no como un elemento de diseño a la venta en las mejores tiendas de marca.