45 out of 45 people found the following review helpful:

Entertainment 2 - 1 Accuracy

4Tell from , 1st April, 2009

This is not really a football film. It is a film about egos, self-destruction and love. That said, I'm not sure a viewer would be quite as quickly drawn in to it without at least some idea of who Brian Clough and Don Revie were (even though the film does do its best to explain this and give a good idea of what it meant for Brian Clough to be appointed Leeds United manager in 1974 after Don Revie's departure). The positives are: a truly terrific performance by Michael Sheen (not simply because he does seem to be Brain Clough, but because of the humour, warmth and internal conflicts he shows within the man); a really strong supporting cast; and an amusing script. The negatives have to be that I left the cinema still feeling that I did not really understand what caused the self-destructive demons with Brian Clough, and that I had been shown a decent tale at the expense of great dollops of truth or detail.

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5 out of 5 people found the following review helpful:

A film of two halves, Brian

Scott Thompson from London, England, 2nd September, 2009

As an adaptation of David Peace's The Damned United, I would rate this movie as a failure. Much of what made the novel so interesting and controversial, the fiery internal monologues, paranoia, fear and loathing and, yep, damnation, has been watered down here in the interest of functional storytelling. But there is still much to admire, including excellent turns by Sheen, Spall and Broadbent and assured direction which establishes a strong sense of time and place. Worth a watch but let down somewhat by its reluctance to go that extra mile in capturing Clough's erratic brand of genius.

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3 out of 3 people found the following review helpful:

A great British Film

daftasabrush from , 15th September, 2009

I really enjoyed this movie. I had received some negative hype about this when it was released in the cinema ~ many critics had marked it down on the basis that dramatic licence had been taken with the truth ~ but I ignored all this and watched on face value. It's a wonderful little British movie with some genuine belly laugh moments - worth renting for Stephen Graham's under-nourished ginger wig alone (as Billy Bremner, a far cry from his role in This Is England). Michael Sheen is making a name as the chameleon of the cinema - and his behaviour and mannerisms here are so near to pure Clough as to be eerie at times. You don't need to be a Footie fan or a Brian Clough fan to enjoy this movie. There's virtually no on-field football, as most of the drama takes place in the dingy tunnels and stale boardrooms of 1960's dilapidated football stadia (looking impressively authentic, and more like cow-sheds than the imposing arenas of today). There's maybe a touch too much Kenneth Williams in Sheen's Clough, but Timothy Spall gives - as always - an incredibly moving portrayal of Clough's long suffering Bromance-partner, Peter Taylor (at times it's almost Brokeback to the Seventies, they are so close.) Truth be told, it's nothing like the book - but then that's a good thing. This is Carry On Cloughy. The scene where he addresses the Leeds players for the first time is priceless. I can't help thinking that the real Clough was much scarier than this one though - but this isn't a documentary, it's just a really good film.

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1 out of 1 people found the following review helpful:

Worst football film ever? Discuss!

norfolkdave from , 19th September, 2009

Oh dear. I thought it might be a problem watching this if you had kind of expertise about the real story and the people concerned. But I was determined not to nit pick over historical accuracy etc. It's just entertainment, right? So you've got to cut them some slack over artistic licence. Fair enough. But even if you accept the 'never let the facts get in the way of a good story' approach you can't get away from the embarrassment of having a rag-bag bunch of wan, overweight actors trying to masquerade as a professional football team, let alone the ultimate 70s 'mean machine' that was Leeds United. Every scene involving training ground, game or dressing room was risible, almost as if it was being played for laughs. The dynamic duo, meanwhile, performed like a pair of clueless Sunday football managers. It wasn't all bad. Revie and Longson were spot on and it was entertaining for its unintentional comedy. But it might just be the worst football film ever - and that's some accolade!

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quite good

Dollydumpertruck from , 6th November, 2009

Well acted but very dissapointed with aspects of the story line, having recently seen the actual interview with Clough and Revie the film adaption was nothing like the real thing. I can understand why the Clough family were unhappy with this book/film. Michael Sheen made this watchable.

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The Damned United

ThePlumber1 from , 5th November, 2009

As a Leeds fan I found the film entertaining as it filled alot of the gaps between what I knew and what I didnt about Brian Cloughs time at Leeds and why he actually came to Leeds Utd. Some good nostalgic shots of the then Leeds Utd team, and good the way they made the stadium look how it used to. Not sure if it will appeal to everyone though, but if you enjoy football for what it is, then you will enjoy this. Especially if you are a Leeds fan.

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enjoyable film

spireite from , 5th November, 2009

martin sheen portrays brian clough excellently and a good film for all football fans.got the impression clough was a desperate and lonely man in his days at leeds,probably why the clough family didnt approve of this film.4 stars

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Ok Film

chilly from , 4th November, 2009

Not as good as i thought it would be, many holes from start to finish.

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