Fourth Division Brit Flick

Rating: 1/10 (6 July 2005)

The "Football Factory" is a low budget, low brow independent British movie that sunk without trace at the cinema and has now reinvented itself as a heavily promoted straight-to-video/DVD release.
It is not difficult to see why.
I was puzzled first of all by anyone wanting to make a contemporary film about a tired social issue that is about as relevant to life in 21st Century Britain today as flared trousers, spangles and the Bay City Rollers.
Nevertheless, British film makers in the past have produced a clutch of outstanding movies dealing with the self same subject matter such as "ID" and "The Firm", so I was prepared to give the "Football Factory" the benefit of the doubt.
I wish now that I hadn't bothered.
One of the most irritating aspects of this movie is it's total lack of originality. The "Football Factory", perhaps in a desperate bid to garner some sort of "cult credibility" with it's audience, shamelessly plagiarises innovations from virtually every successful British film of the last decade: "Gangster No1", "Trainspotting", Lock Stock" etc etc. The comparisons, unfortunately, end there.
If you want to watch a large group of foul mouthed, baseball cap wearing, lame brained little Englanders engaging in acts of pointless violence, steer clear of this celluloid calamity and go visit any UK town centre at the weekend instead. The acting will probably be a bit more believable too!