Not the best representation

Rating: 3/10 (30 May 2006)

I actually ended up liking this film more than I thought I would. However, it still misses the spot in a few areas, which will be picked up more by British audiences than the US market.
Firstly, Charlie Hunnam's London accent is appalling and extremely distracting. Also, some of the references made to football and hooliganism are not accurate. At the West Ham game, the team they are supposedly playing is Birmingham, who Bovver calls "dirty Northern b*stards". For the record, Birmingham is not in the North of England.
Also, the organisation of the GSE is not realistic. For a start, all the members are very young which simply would not be true of a firm for a club the size of West Ham. Second, hooliganism is much better organised than is depicted here. Everyone would know exactly who, where and what was likely to happen days before a game and would be prepared. A scenario of anybody "rushing" an opposing pub is very uncommon and almost impossible in the current era of stringent policing.
What is actually shown in this film is a group of lads who like a scrap and love football. Real hooligans are not particularly interested in football, simply the buzz of so many people and the thought of taking on rival firms. I would also say that Elijah Wood, although suitably timid and fresh-faced in his role, takes away from the credibility of the film. If a firm were ever to accept an outsider (particularly from the US) into a firm he would have to prove himself by more than simply landing a couple of lucky punches in a brawl. Wood simply does not show enough of the requisite toughness which would grant him respect.
On the whole, the film is well-paced and thoughtfully shot. But it doesn't really capture anything real about hooliganism - or anything we didn't know. I would recommend it as an alternative to the lighter-hearted 'Football Factory', but would not endorse its content to the British viewer.