Not bad, but The Football Factory does it so much better

Rating: 6/10 (1 August 2005)

I went to see a preview of this film last week before its general release in the UK as Green Street next month and having seen some good reviews of it on here, I went with some quite high expectations. I can't complain about the acting, but the storyline and some slight niggles left me a bit disappointed. It was difficult to believe that Elijah 'pretty boy' Wood would ever get involved in a Fight Club-style street brawl; Charlie Hunnam, whilst a good actor, does the most unconvincing cockernee accent since Dick Van Dyke; and the dialogue and the singing at the end made me feel I was watching an Americanised version of a British story, rather than feeling involved in it. Other niggles such as 'Birmingham' actually being Gillingham, hooligan fights in Bank where in fact nothing at all happens at weekends, Bank not having an overground platform and 'Manchester' being a dead ringer for Fenchurch Street station did nothing to draw me into the film. Other comments say they find it difficult to believe how a Harvard kid can get drawn into football and its tribalness so easily, but as a British football fan it's easy to understand. What's not so easy to understand is why a group of British football fans would accept a wet-behind-the-ears American who's never been in a fight and states his major as History. Overall the film was entertaining, but for a British audience some of the dialogue is far too corny and American to be believable. The Football Factory does the same job much better, with better characters, better story and more humour. Check that out instead.