Linbeymusol Wonderful character development!

Platicsco Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Quiet Muffin This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Henry Hudson This was a very good film, probably one of my favourite films of all time. When I watched this film, I was of course aware of Brian Clough and Don Revie but I had no real prior knowledge of their rivalry, nor the exploits of Clough at Leeds United but this did not hinder my enjoyment of this piece.To have Michael Sheen as Brian Clough was a superb casting decision, he portrayed Clough brilliantly throughout the film. Timothy Spall did a great job playing Brian Clough's long-suffering assistant Peter Taylor. The two actors were not only great as individuals but as a duo they worked very well together in this film.I would highly recommend this film to any football fan but even if you are not really interested in the sport 'The Damned United' is a very good piece of drama that is definitely worth a watch.

malcolmgsw It has to be said that there is not much competition for best film in this category.Probably the last half decent film,The Arsenal stadium Mystery was made in 1939!It is a tour de force for both leading actors.However there is one point on which i will take issue,namely the reason Cloughie hated Revie.Revie was known as "Don Reddies".the reason is that it is alleged that Revie tried to fix games.Never ever proved but no smoke without fire.It is also true that Revie produced one of the most detested teams of all time.They could all play but they preferred to intimidate.It is ironic then that at the end of his managerial career Clough was found guilty of certain offences.however his image,unlike Revies is not tarnished.He managed an opposition club but i still hold him in affection.

policy134 Michael Sheen in another bio and what a magnificent character he gets to play this time. However, if you are not a fan of him, stay away because he is on screen every minute of the "damned" thing.It was written with him in mind and while I was enjoying his performance on screen, I could not help but feel left out on something. Then it struck me, there is virtually no believable reaction to this enormously unsympathetic character, except at that crucial moment in Brighton.The story involves his hatred of the Leeds team and we are basically left with him ranting and raving about this hatred in the scenes in 1974. I would have liked a little more background on the relationship between he and the players at Leeds, because you know there must have been more to it then what is shown.Instead, the main focus is on the Taylor/Clough relationship, which although nice, is kind of something you have seen over and over again.This is not a bad film by any means, but it wasn't that fulfilling as I would have thought, and that last scene is really dragged out endlessly. Bromance comedies are all the rage now, but I thought that the last scene could have worked just as well without that dialogue. Sorry, it made me kind of sick.

james-j-lee "You are a bloody disgrace!" hollers actor Michael Sheen as he explodes in the role of Brian Clough - the larger than life character, who in real life was arguably one of the greatest football managers ever.Sheen produces an incredible performance to re-create the persona of Clough. In The Damned United, he completely captures Clough's arrogance, his humour, his humility and his incredible professional drive. For those too young to remember the outrageous genius of Clough in his prime, then this movie encapsulates not just Clough but the whole halcyon era of 1970s football. This is a time when football was about glory and not money. It was a period when players played for the jersey and clubs were packed full of characters - Clough was undoubtedly one of, if not the biggest and most talked about character of them all. In fact thinking back Clough's charisma makes Mourhino look like a ball boy!Sheen plays Clough without parody not the easiest thing to do given that Clough was one of the most parodied figures of the day. So much so that it became a staple of impressionist Mike Yarwood's BBC1 Saturday night prime time show in the 70s. It's great credit to Sheen that he avoided what could have been an easy option. Instead what we get is the talented Mr Sheen giving us the real deal, the accent, the mannerisms, the realness that Cloughie himself would have admired.As a film, this is superbly put together with old footage, snappy editing and a clever use of the graphics of the time -the old vidi-printer is used very effectively in relaying the back story of Clough's teams'successes.Though the backdrop to the story is football, this isn't really about football. It's a character study of a unique man and his friendship/partnership with his closest colleague - Peter Taylor played by Timothy Spall - an actor who is true drama heavyweight and not just physically. Spall as always delivers a strong performance and provides good foil for Sheen and most importantly does no devious scene stealing when there must have been a temptation as Taylor too was a big character.The plot weaves flashbacks of Clough's heady days as Derby Manager with his 44 day ordeal as manager of Leeds Utd - then Britain's top club side. The script is true and pacey, the cinematography well done, the soundtrack is apt if not memorable (surpisingly for the 1970s) and the set designs/wardrobe are authentic.Having read the book, the film admittedly bears only mild resemblance. The book gets more into the head of Clough and is a very tunnel visioned and bitter point of view of his short time in charge of England's top football club. The book is much darker and less sentimental than the film, but both are equally enjoyable and entertaining.Whether you are football fan or not, if you claim to be a film fan and you don't see The Damned United then as Mr Clough himself would say, "You are a bloody disgrace!"