...Sports Hooliganism. Good Grief!! After having shockingly, albeit intriguingly read the synopsis of 2009's "The Firm", but before partaking of the film itself, this clueless viewer genuinely had to look that term up...investigate the phenomenon, so to speak...and to reiterate...GOOD GRIEF!!! I mean, don't get me wrong: I haven't been totally ignorant of violence in sports, as far as spectator team support, taken to a ridiculously visceral level; why, the news media, on these domestic shores, is often replant with tasty tidbits of way-too-obsessed spectators, getting way too carried away with the 'rah, rah, rah...go git' 'em, team' reverie, that they begin to beat the crap out of any random anyone, rooting for the other guy. However, these graphic news break visuals seem to typically restrict themselves to singular incidents...one-on-one's, or in one-in-a-blue-moon times, crazed mobs, blind-rage storming the sports event field, itself. In films, it almost seems like the study of 'sports hooliganism' is a sub-genre, unto itself, with...for this viewer...unseen, though reportedly tense and unflinching dramas, typically set in Great Britain, like 2005's "Green Street Hooligans", 2008's "Cass", amongst others. And
this...this eye-opening look at rampant sports spectator violence...though, reportedly much more diluted and melodramatic than it's inspiring predecessor...the original "Firm", circa 1989...it still embraces the seemingly mindless essence of the activity...
...in his circle of friends, Dom is known to be a very impressionable, and yet also, very gutsy young man. Bex, the charismatic leader of the West Ham United football firm, cannot help but see that very thing, after Dom and his friend, Tel, seek out Bex at the local pub, where he hangs out, after an ugly and violent encounter, which happened between Bex and Tel the previous evening, at a popular dance club. Though unimpressed with Tel's attempt at an apology, Dex sees a fire within Dom, which might prove useful in his firm; as such, he takes Dom under his wing...even going as far as helping to induct Dom into the firm, who flatters Dex in return, by acquiring the same track suit 'colors' as Dex...
...quickly accepted by the eclectic, football-obsessed members of the West Ham firm, despite criticism by Tel, Dom seems elated to have found himself an amiable niche in a cool clique; however, when Bex insists that Dom makes good on the firm's more violent and underlining intent...including progressively vicious and rageful encounters with other firms, as well as engaging in property theft...Dom begins to question his rash decision, as far as joining the firm...as well as Bex's wildly obsessed plan for the firm to assume the respectable, albeit unstable mantle of 'indomitable'. When the opportunity for achieving such a mantle arises, with Dom is forcibly coerced and swept up in the ensuing violence...amidst a devastating encounter with another firm that suggests that Bex and the West Ham United boys might well have bitten off more than they could chew...Dom realizes that leaving the firm might well be easier said than done...
...as startlingly violent and visually upsetting as the film is, at times (...let's face it; the mere wet crack sound of a baseball bat, hitting home onto someone's head is most assuredly enough to shock the senses...not unlike the effect of one, taking a whole spoonful of horseradish), it is the high drama of the characterizations, coupled with the timely situation, which takes precedence, herein. Most viewers will definitely identify, as well as sympathize with the young and naive Dom, as portrayed by Calem MacNab (...who worked with director Nick Love previously, on yet another study of football violence and sports hooliganism, with 2004's "The Football Factory"); at that particular age, who isn't looking for acceptance amongst one's peers...that nitch of belonging to something...hopefully something profound, meaningful and fulfilling...but sometimes finding one's self in way over one's head...much as Dom, here?...
...polar opposite to Dom, and an alluring reflection of power & respect...as impulsively reckless and misdirected as that power proves to be, in the course of the film...and which Dom, nonetheless finds himself invariably captivated with, is Bex, the leader of the West Ham United firm (...a boisterously vibrant and menacing standout performance by actor Paul Anderson...though, reportedly falling just short of genuinely rivaling Gary Oldman's take on the role, some 20 years earlier, in the original film). A devoted family man, and a respected real estate agent, harboring a secret life of competitive angst and violence...an inebriating 'high' of power, a revered baskin of respect, and a venue of emotional release...blindly delusional & directed...and eventually proven to dictate his downfall...
...despite having never been privy to the concept of sports hooliganism...that is, until having viewed this particular film, this viewer cannot help but recall something domestically similar in spirit, cinematically, which might genuinely compare to "The Firm"...the gang violence, the reluctant gang inductee, the ensuing melodramatics, the reputed gang with major-league 'connections', the youthful delusions of grandeur and/or aspirations...and well, this viewer could not help but be reminded of the 1979 gang drama, "The Wanderers", which despite the nostalgic time, place and visceral purpose (...in this case, violent defense of one's territory, vice violent expression of sport team support), actually reflected many of the same basic concepts...except, with regards to "The Firm"...again, considering the fashion nostalgia of the setting...it seems that the separate gangs...OK, they're called 'firms', here...are all wearing the same two-piece track/sweat suits (...I guess that everybody must know everybody, in the midst of these unnerving street brawls...identifying each other by face, rather than merely what they are wearing)...
...in a weird way, simultaneously befitting to the events depicted in "The Firm", and yet at the same time, contradicting the visceral fervor of the very same events, the film is liberally sprinkled with an eclectic selection of some of the best pop, groove and bubble-gum '80's music, once again reflective of the particular time, place and events, which the film engagingly depicts. Top 40 pop music staples, like Kool & the Gang's "Celebration", Soft Cell's "Tainted Love" and Yardbrough & Peoples' "Don't Stop the Music", duke it out for attention, not unlike that of the film's quick-to-fight firms, against more obscure 'B' side hits, like Zapp's "Computer Love" and Tears for Fears' "Mad World"...
...standing out amongst the typically routine and threadbare offerings in many of the Twilight Time blu-ray discs (...unless one counts the case-by-case notation of Twilight Time's more notable selection of movies, included on most discs...a showy checklist of film titles, which they have offered, are offering, or no longer offering, in being out-of-print), is the generous plethora of extras, included here. An audio commentary, accompanying the feature film, with director Nick Love, and actor Paul Anderson, affording listeners a spirited and free-for-all view of the making of the film. A behind-the-scenes short, which pretty much visually capsulises the same information as the much more extensive commentary. The theatrical trail, of course...and some pieces/parts tidbits, exuding the film's fight choreography, as well as deleted scenes and an alternate ending...
...for those, much like this now-privy viewer, who have gone uninitiated by the visceral dynamics of sports hooliganism, as depicted in film, 2009's "The Firm" may well prove to be a shockingly intriguing and unflinchingly compelling viewing experience; however, for those more seasoned by the events depicted herein, thanks to notable and more visually striking films like "Green Street Hooligans", "The Football Factory", as well as the original "Firm", this film might be sort of let down, in it's emphasis on drama and relationships, rather than further visually combative insight on the violent dynamics and colorful thuggery underliningly associated with this particular time and place in British sports history. Nonetheless, this one's a keeper, and comes highly recommended...
No comments:
Post a Comment