Powerful character study dressed up as a feel-good movie

Rating: 10/10 (9 October 2000)

MAY CONTAIN SPOILER!!!
The most amazing thing about this film is to be found in what is not said. The unspoken motivation of Julie Walters' dance teacher and the spiteful silence of her young daughter towards Billy; the lack of initial emotional connection between Billy and his father (and the father's own reasons for pushing Billy into boxing); and the confrontation between father and son where not a word is spoken but where the father recognises for the first time the gift his son has. These are all extraordinarily powerful scenes in a movie which has been unfairly criticised in some quarters for wearing its heart on its sleeve and for inconsistencies in characterisation.
I believe these criticisms are totally unfounded. Lee Hall's brilliant script and Stephen Daldry's inspired direction take basically Rocky-style material and overhaul it with terrific characters and truthful sentiment. Billy's dad does not act inconsistently when he is confronted by his son's talent - although times are hard, and he is on the face of it inattentive to his youngest child, he does finance his boxing lessons. Like the ballet teacher who sees her own missed opportunities in Billy, the father sees his own discarded potential in the ring in his son - the father's boxing prowess is referred to twice in the movie - and this clarifies even more his outrage when he discovers the hard-earned boxing money has been "squandered" on "friggin' ballet".
There are many moments like this which underscore the characters' motivations in the film and critics who insist on inconsistencies really should pay more attention. This is one movie where we have to look deeper into background detail (which is sometimes placed discreetly before us) to get our answers as to why the people in this movie behave in the way they do. And that is a refreshing change from the characterisation-by-numbers tat which often disgraces modern movies.
For these reasons above, I think "Billy Elliot" is not only one of the movies of the year, but one of the best for many years, especially from Britain where it seems crappy gangster movies are all filmmakers are interested in inflicting on us. Everything rings true in it and the acting is some of the best I have ever been privileged to see on screen.
Julie Walters is, unsurprisingly, terrific as Billy's teacher; Jamie Draven is a revelation as Tony, the eldest brother; and everything that has been said of Jamie Bell as Billy is totally justified: this is the best performance by a young actor since Christian Bale in "Empire of the Sun".
But, for me, the best performance (and the emotional core of the movie) is provided by Gary Lewis as the father. The pent-up rage which spills over into genuine grief and, finally, an act of unbridled desperation is all realised perfectly by this Scottish actor who, what with "Carla's Song", "My Name Is Joe", "Orphans", and now this, is fast becoming one of the most dynamic performers on the screen. If his name does not feature prominently come awards-time I will be sorely disappointed.
Oh, and if all this sounds very serious, I should point out that the film is also incredibly funny, and ends with a smile fixed squarely on your face. Highly recommended.
10/10