The Damned United (2009)
Genre: Drama / Sport
Duration: 98 minuten
Country:
United Kingdom
Directed by: Tom Hooper
Stars: Michael Sheen, Jim Broadbent and Timothy Spall
IMDb score:
7,5 (46.990)
Releasedate: 27 March 2009
The Damned United plot
"They love me for what I'm not... ...they hate me for what I am."
Before his successes with Nottingham Forest, where he won the European Cup I in 1979 and 1980, Brian Clough (Michael Sheen) had a difficult 44 days with Leeds United, who appointed him as the new manager. Clough despises Leeds United, all its players and former club manager Don Revie. The club manages to win almost no games and Clough is on the verge of being sacked...
Actors and actresses
Brian Clough
Peter Taylor
Don Revie
Sam Longson
Jimmy Gordon
Billy Bremner
Manny Cossins
Austin Mitchell
Colin Todd
John O'Hare
Reviews & comments
T.O.
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- 2333 messages
- 2642 votes
I understand that the film is based on a book, but it is strange that at the end there is a little bit of mention of the later, very successful period with Nottingham Forest. Then the rest of the story suddenly seems a bit arbitrary.
Nevertheless, a very effective film, with a limited budget to tell a striking football story. You wonder why the BBC doesn't invest more in that.
Remarkably small role by Stephen Graham as Billy Bremner, just before his real breakthrough.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Shadowed
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- 10127 messages
- 6058 votes
Safe.
The Damned United is a biographical drama film that seems to avoid the risky, rougher bits of Sheen's life. In reality, of course, this is not the case, this film seems to be quite complete for what it tells exactly, but it still feels like director Hooper avoids the really more difficult parts.
This gives us a fairly standard picture of this period from Clough. We don't get much background from him, only how he did while coaching these clubs. Unfortunately, we don't get to see a lot of coaching ourselves, because the sport is also avoided. Here and there you see some scenes with a football, furthermore the film has a great lack of sports.
Hooper uses a fairly raw filter for his film, which is beneficial at times, disadvantageous at other times. The Damned United lacks a really light-hearted push that can keep it watchable as a result. The editing and editing are both below par, and could use quite a bit more power. Fortunately, Hooper later managed to get back into the director's chair.
So far my criticism seems a bit strange and short-sighted, in summary I mainly thought that this film makes too little effort to make Clough an interesting character. I didn't really care what this man was up to for now. I thought it was an uninteresting character who struggled to fill the minutes.
I had also hoped for a little more sport. If you can't make Clough an interesting character, at least put something in the movie that is fun to watch. Certainly during the current period in which the European Championship is underway, the film lacks a sporty edge. That's a shame, because the visual setup was nice and the story itself had potential. The film isn't bad, but it isn't good either.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Lovelyboy
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- 3527 messages
- 2611 votes
I saw The Damned United a few years ago and it really stuck with me. So I didn't really have to think about it when I came across the film at the thrift store. Brian Clough's marriage to Leeds can certainly be called a separate story, refreshing and different is of course that a success story is not the basis this time.
Every fan of football, English football and or nostalgia is at the right place with this film. The authenticity radiates from the old stadiums, the cup football, rivalry and the peeling paint in the old dressing rooms. Strong is the role of Sheen as the brutal Clough who is an impossible man at times. However, the rivalry and dislike for Don Revie is understandable as well as tangible, as is the antipathy towards Leeds itself, that is how it goes with big clubs that are successful. Nice are the thick accents and the frictions with various figures such as the chairman of Derby, the players of Leeds as well as his own buddy and assistant Peter Taylor.
Downsides, although not big, are the moments where the truth lies a little more in the middle. Sheen is delightful, yet the real Clough seems a little more thoughtful and, admittedly, cocky but not as brutal and difficult as in the movie. The interview where both appear on TV is also a lot more subdued and while they clearly don't like each other it's not as personal as in the film and focuses mainly on management style and the disciplinary part of Leeds, which Clough does have a lot of criticism on. .
But as said, those are details in an otherwise very smooth and fun film about the trainer Brian Clough who would later celebrate great successes with Nottingham Forest. Very nice and a great addition to the collection.
Translated from Dutch · View original
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