57 out of 57 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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15 out of 19 people found the following review helpful:

Didn't watch it!

DCM from , 21st January, 2010

Got this in the post and realised it was about football - *so* not interested in that so posted it back without even inserting it into the DVD player!

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10 out of 10 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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7 out of 7 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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Ramtastic Flick

Ramtastic from , 15th March, 2010

Being a life long Derby County fan it was a must watch movie, the way life at the Baseball Ground were shown was very convincing - smoke filled boardrooms hidden below wooden terraces - the memories flooded back! Sheen was great as Mr Clough and to this day its a crying shame he left Derby. The movie really gives you a sense of the time. Even Young Nigel makes an appearance, great movie and a story well told! .....never did like Dirty Leeds! Ho Ho!

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You're all cheats!

A Customer from Macclesfield, 15th March, 2010

Timothy Spall and and Michael Sheen put in top quality performances (Michael Sheen seems to 'become' every character I've seen him play on the big screen, from Tony Blair, through Kenneth Williams to David Frost). This film has everything - gritty realism, laughs, convincing complex relationships, and the beautiful game. Except, probably the best thing about the Damned United is that it shows the 'beautiful game' in it's highly unglamorous 1970's state, a time when footballers smoked fags, pitches were like battle grounds, and vendettas were addressed with shocking physicality during matches, often unchecked by the referee. I loved this film for its dry wit, its excellent performances, its dialogue, and its subject matter. Brilliant!

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Worth watching

pad from , 13th March, 2010

I don't think you have to be into football to appreciate this film, but it does help. Even if your knowledge of Brian Clough is limited, you can still admire the acting talent of Michael Sheen and Timothy Spall. It does cover a certain period of 'Cloughies' life when managing Leeds United, but all that aside, its the detail of other aspects of his life that are also interesting and the part is played to great comic effect. Definitely worth a watch.

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Better than I thought it would be

SarahB82 from , 11th March, 2010

I was really impressed with this film, it was interesting and thought provoking throughout. It showed the gifts and flaws of a very talented man.

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