GO, BILLY! (mild spoilers)

Rating: 10/10 (19 July 2001)

I love this movie. I saw it multiple times in the theater, and I bought the DVD the day it came out.
This film works in so many ways. Jamie Bell is perfectly cast as Billy, and I dare to say his performance in this film was every bit as good as Haley Joel Osment's in The Sixth Sense. There were times watching this movie that I forgot he was an actor; I felt like he *was* Billy. The film captures a place (1984) and an era (Thatcher's England) so well it's like time travel.
The story is simple, and that's why it works. The soundtrack is stunning, 100% bang-on, especially The Clash's "London Calling" and The Jam's "Town Called Malice." Bell's dance numbers are brash and enthusiastic, and you can almost feel the character of Billy throwing everything he has into his self-expression. The times that he seems most alive are when he is dancing, because it is then that he transcends the constraints placed upon him by his family and friends, and of course society, with its "only poofs [homosexuals] dance" mentality. And hooray for Billy, the fact that his best friend is a cross-dressing "poof" doesn't really phase him. The scene where Billy bids goodbye to Michael and Durham County is quite the heartstring tugger.
If you haven't seen this movie, do so. You'll want to dance right along with Billy, and don't be surprised if you find yourself, like Mrs. Wilkinson, cheering "Go, Billy!"