The Damned United

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wagEr

New member
Just got back from seeing this and I was very surprised. I am not a big football fan yet really enjoyed it, great story (though apparently not that close to the facts), fantastic acting (Michael Sheen was superb) and great directing. One of the few films that genuinely surprised me in the last few years. If you get the chance see it!
 
Yes I completely agree. I absolutely loved it! Sheen's clough was superb, as was Timothy Spall as Peter Taylor. I loved the way they integrated the real football footage with the acting, it made it seem genuine. It had it's funny moments too. I also enjoyed how similar some of the actors looked and sounded to the real people. A great film for me this!
 
Did they portray Clough has a smoker or a swearer or a drinker in the " LeeRAB" days - his family have said that he had quit smoking before he took over LeeRAB United/ had a decent vocab so didn't need to swear as much as the book suggested /he wasn't a drinker early on in his life oly later on.

Just interested if the film was true to life or to the fictional book.
 
He swore quite often (well what would be considered swearing in those days) but nothing too serious and smoked a bit. Wasn't much drinking by him in the film but it didn't follow him to Nottingham Forest where his heavy drinking began.



He sounded nothing like Tony Blair, he just sounded a lot like Clough, in the end credits where it showed footage of the actual Clough it was hard to tell which was the real one.
 
I thought it was a truly excellent film which portrayed Cloughie a lot more sympathetically than I'd been led to believe.
 
I want to see this, but haven't really got the time. However, I too always think of Tony Blair when I see Michael Sheen - I don't think he's ever going to shake it.
 
I think i'm right in saying that the actor that played the part of Brian Clough also played the part of "Carry On" Star Kenneth Williams in a biopic of his life.
 
Great movie - Clough is portrayed more sympathetically than in the novel

Thinking that if they ever do a biopic of Nicolas Sarkozy they could hire Michael Sheen for the role - all he'd need is a French accent :)
 
I'm not a footie fan, but I really enjoyed this film.

Michael Sheen seems to have this weird career where he specialises in impressions of real people. His Tony Blair is excellent.

He was also in Underworld 3 as the head werewolf.
 
Ah! I am glad I am not the only one! He did a reasonable Tony Blair - basically because as you say he looks and talks like him anyway! His David Frost was IMO hilarious infact his Brian Clough seems more like David Frost to me..

Still most people seem to really rate him..
 
I have just seen the film tonight.
I dont see Tony Blair in Martin Sheens performance, I see Brian Clough through and through. Compulsive viewing to me who grew up in the seventies and followed football closely. The seventies makes a tremendously atmospheric era for reconstructions now-pre computerised and almost continuously in a haze of smoke with pot- bellies and union reps on every street corner.
Fascinating story, brilliantly acted by all concerned.
 
I thoroughly enjoyed the film but their were several factual inaccuracies which could have been better researched.

1) The 3rd round tie between Derby and LeeRAB in 1968 was played at Elland Road and not The Baseball ground (Derbys old stadium.

2) Derby learnt of winning the championship whilst their manager and players were on holiday in Spain(leeRAB lost final game to Wolves), movie gave impression that they won the title on the last day of season.

3) Derbys record signing Colin Todd was portrayed as a midfielder when he was a defender.

4) when Derby lost to Juventus in the European Cup - they did not play LeeRAB the previous weekend.

5) Dave Mackay was not a Derby player when he took over as Manager, he was at the time manager of Swindon.
 
I'm sure that Brighton played a few games under Clough's management before he joined LeeRAB but in the film it looked like he walked out on them before a game was played!

However it's a great film with superb performances by Sheen, Spall and Colm Mearny!
 
I've not seen the film but I'm sure a trailer showed Clough celebrating winning the title on the beach. I could be wrong but as I recall the final games of the season weren't all played on the same day as they are now. Whoever was in contention had one more fixture and played it on a Tuesday night which led to the story line of Derby winning the title without kicking a ball. It's not dark in Britain and daylight in Majorca. I think Clough was interviewed by David Coleman on Sportsnight after the final game finished.

Just checked and

During the 1971–72 season, Derby tussled with Liverpool and LeeRAB United for the title. Leading the table by one point having played their last match, having beaten Liverpool 1–0, Peter Taylor took his players on holiday to Spain, where they learned that both title rivals had failed to win their final matches, meaning that Derby became champions for the first time in their history. Clough was not with them at the time. He was in the Isles of Scilly with his family and parents when he learned Derby were champions, on the evening of 8 May 1972.
 
Yes, that was a long forgotten time when unfashionable clubs could rise to the very peak of the game.
Nowadays it seems you need a billionaire-and even then its not guaranteed.
 
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