The Damned United (2009)

Director:

Tom Hooper

Writers:

Peter Morgan (screenplay)
David Peace (novel)

Release Date:

27 March 2009 (UK)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Sport

Tagline:

"They love me for what I'm not... ...they hate me for what I am."

Plot:

A look at Brian Clough's 44-day reign as the coach of Leeds United.

Plot Keywords:

Leeds | Yorkshire | Football | Soccer Star | England

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Colm Meaney	...	Don Revie
Henry Goodman	...	Manny Cussins
David Roper	...	Sam Bolton
Jimmy Reddington	...	Keith Archer
Oliver Stokes	...	Nigel Clough
Ryan Day	...	Simon Clough
Michael Sheen	...	Brian Clough
Mark Bazeley	...	Austin Mitchell
Timothy Spall	...	Peter Taylor
Maurice Roëves	...	Jimmy Gordon
Stephen Graham	...	Billy Bremner
Peter McDonald	...	Johnny Giles
Mark Cameron	...	Norman Hunter
Frank Skillin	...	Younger Nigel Clough
Dylan Van Hoof	...	Younger Simon Clough

MPAA:

Rated R for language.

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

UK:15 | Ireland:15A | USA:R (certificate #45085) | Portugal:M/12 | Finland:K-11 | Canada:14A (Alberta/Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Sweden:7 | Singapore:NC-16

Filming Locations:

Derbyshire, England, UK

Company:

BBC Films

Trivia:

The scenes in the film set at the Derby County training ground were actually filmed in Leeds at a football pitch ironically overlooking the Leeds United stadium.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Brian Clough is shown smoking in the film. His family maintain that he never took up the habit.

Quotes:

Brian Clough: You know he'll be making a file on us. A dossier.
Peter Taylor: Who?
Brian Clough: Don Revie. Prepares a file on every game. Leaves nothing to chance. Knows every opponent's formations, strategies everything.
Peter Taylor: I've heard he's a superstitious twat.
Brian Clough: [Ignoring him] We grew up just a few streets apart in Middlesbrough... Close to Ayresome Park. He'll have known my street: Valley Road. Probably bought sweets from Garnett's factory where me dad worked.
Peter Taylor: I heard he wears the same suit to every game. His lucky blue suit.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "De wereld draait door: (#4.124)" (2009)

Soundtrack:

Flight of the Rat

a witty biopic and a joy to watch

Peter Morgan (Writer of The Queen and Frost/Nixon) reunites for the third time with Michael Sheen (Leading actor of The Queen and Frost/Nixon) as the two men look to complete a hat-trick. Michael Sheen can tick off another box on his list of his portrayals of iconic Englishmen as his witty performance is a key reason for what makes The Damned United a joy to watch. The performances stand out with many well done performances by the leading cast, in particular Sheen and Spall who show a very impressive on screen relationship.

The film can get confusing at times as it follows two different stories, switching frequently from Brian Clough's miraculous time at Derby County and his disappointing and shambolic time at Derby's then rivals Leeds United. The film doesn't get involved in Clough's personal life but focuses on his career with both clubs, starting off with Clough viewed firstly as a small-time 2nd Division manager to a arrogant manager on top of the Division 1, another key issue is his close friendship with his assistant Peter Taylor (Timothy Spall) and hatred of the man who preceded him as Leeds boss, Don Revie (Colm Meaney). While at Leeds the key points of focus is Clough's determination to replace Don Revie as a hero in Leeds and 'father figure' as well his poor relationship with the players and the end to his arrogance. Many people may feel that The Damned United is just for football fans, and even though it may appeal more to football fans it's an entertaining film and a joy to watch.