Sounded Promising

Rating: 3/10 (30 September 2005)

As soon as the main character spoke in this film i couldn't help but squirm in my seat thinking "is he really gonna be this bad throughout the whole movie?" Things didn't get much better, in fact the accent seemed to get worse and worse as the film progressed. I thought the whole thing was devoid of any originality or style, the flashy jarring fight scenes annoyed me immensely. Casting was poor , except for the main thug from the rival firm , who i thought was pretty convincing.
The main storyline seemed to be comprised of the best bits of ID and The Football Factory (which to me is the most realistic portrayal of football hooliganism) and didn't have many surprises right up towards the very predictable ending. I didn't like the way the story went with the journalism and typical American / Harvard angle , quite frankly it was stupid. Elijah Wood wasn't terrible, i think he did the best he could with the material but he just didn't seem to fit the role for me. I know a lot of people find it hard to watch him in something drastically different from Lord of the Rings and i must admit in the middle of the chaotic fight scenes i did think at some point he was going to reach from around his neck, place the ring on his finger and disappear from sight! The main firm didn't look or act like they would be able to fend off every gang, in fact they would have had trouble beating up youngsters in a playgroup...just not convincing enough casting i repeat!
So to sum it up the lack of originality, annoying camera work, terrible casting and beyond belief predictability left a lot to be desired. Personally i cant imagine how people have been awarding this 10/10 it didn't move me in the slightest, i suggest The Football Factory or the Firm for a more realistic and enjoyable hooligan experience :)
3/10 for me...and thats only because some of the dialogue made me chuckle.