Predictable sociological story well carried out

Rating: 7/10 (23 April 2003)

Set against the background of the strikes and consequent upheavals between the miners and the then British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, `Billy Elliot' is an interesting if predictable film. Part of its interest lies in not having the standard UK accents from down south, but the good almost `Geordie' accents from the far north of England: though we do not get to see much of the beautiful countryside of Durham, Northumberland, just a few residential streets of miners' houses. Jamie Bell himself is from Manchester, but the northern accent is near enough similar as to go well with the more authentic `Geordie' use of English. His interpretation is sincere, and at times is pretty convincing. Hats off to the brilliant `old dame' Jean Heywood as Billy's grandmother. Gary Lewis as his father and Jamie Draven as his elder brother both put in admirable interpretations, and Julie Walters offers a very level-headed reading of her part, though her accent seems to be from a fair bit further south  just a touch of `brummy', perhaps.
In such an atmosphere, with masculine domination of just about everything, more so here as Jamie's mother is dead, the fact that the little boy does not wish to do such manly things as knocking anyone's head off or simply belting a punch-bag but is attracted to ballet, works out to be just a little too steep for Billy's father and elder brother, both embittered hard-core strikers clashing head-on with that woman from Number Ten. However, the little boy's desires hold out and the rest is an almost triumphal fairy-tale exposition  if it were not for the shrewd directing keeping everything in line with the rife and social upheaval going on at the time.
The famous miners' strike of 1984 had the UK importing coal from Poland and the USA (`cheaper' says the smug lady from Parliament) and caused enormous social crises from the mining valleys of South Wales to the Midlands and Lancashire, and of course the far north of Durham and Northumberland. This should be remembered while watching this film: it has its painful moments.
Now, let me see: ah, Stephen Daldry's `The Hours' is still on at the local `multitheatre' so I think I'll just pop along there in a couple of hours as I am on holiday and not working late ..........