David O'ConnellThe Damned United
October 29th 2009 04:20
Occasionally a single performance has the power to galvanize an entire production, elevating it beyond its humble origins. Michael Sheen, a chameleonic British actor with a recent history of perfecting portrayals of famous figures, has outdone himself in Tom Hooper’s The Damned United, bringing another fine Peter Morgan screenplay to life; this time, the scribe of The Queen, The Last King of Scotland and others is working from a book by David Peace.
Sheen is Brian Clough, the idiosyncratic manager of lowly Derby County football team, in the early stages of building the foundation of a very successful unit with temperate best friend Peter Taylor (Timothy Spall) in his passenger's seat alongside him. With startling ease the team rises through the ranks into the upper echelon of the Premier League by the early '70's.
Clough's relationship with Taylor becomes crucial to the narrative, the bond they share being at the core of a success Clough mostly credits himself with, but also there’s also his damaging obsession with Leeds United’s most successful manager Don Revie (Colm Meaney). A snub by Revie when Clough was still entrenched at the bottom of division two standings with Derby raised Clough’s ire to the extent of creating a long-nurtured grudge; it's one which would poison his chance to take a chunk out of his competitor’s legacy at Leeds when chosen to fill the vacated post Revie abandoned for the coveted England job.
Instead, Clough’s cocky swagger, his refined arrogance bordering on insolence, became a major stumbling block and his plan backfired, leading to an infamously brief 44-day stint at the helm in 1974. Finally relieved of his duties, he would leave the club in disarray with his tail between his legs.
It might almost be regarded as the stuff of Shakespearean tragedy if Clough hadn’t quickly risen from the ashes soon after, though the film itself ends on a rueful note, Clough begging his betrayed friend Taylor for forgiveness. With his confidante back by his side he would later guide Nottingham Forest to European glory, cementing one of the more remarkable tag-teams in football history.
The Damned United may only take a slice out of Clough’s life and fictionalize it around the edges for cinematic purposes, but there’s enough material here for a compelling character study of a man ignorant of his own capacity to fail; Clough becomes his own worst enemy, blinkered to the most essential ingredient of his success and the pitfalls of taking your eye off the ball.
Hooper's direction is mostly functional but the lack of a flashy stylist doesn't hurt the film at all, for front and centre stands Sheen and his remarkable transformative powers. His portrayal of Clough, regardless of how accurate it is, makes for mesmerizing viewing; charismatic, charming, audaciously arrogant, Sheen makes the film his own, disappearing inside this fascinating, enigmatic man.
Spall and Meaney are typically strong in support but make no mistake, they’re playing second fiddle to Sheen in every way. Jim Broadbent also makes a decent stab at depicting Sam Longson, Derby County's long-suffering, harried owner; Clough’s increasingly antagonistic relationship with Longson was to become representative of his downward spiral, entangled in his irrational emotional responses to a man he once held up on a pedestal, thus overruling lucid thinking.
Despise, admire or pity him, Clough’s dominant personality is the foundation compelling drama is built on, and consequently, The Damned United succeeds because of Sheen’s commanding attention to detail and the mastery he displays of his craft.
Watch trailer here.
Sheen is Brian Clough, the idiosyncratic manager of lowly Derby County football team, in the early stages of building the foundation of a very successful unit with temperate best friend Peter Taylor (Timothy Spall) in his passenger's seat alongside him. With startling ease the team rises through the ranks into the upper echelon of the Premier League by the early '70's.
Clough's relationship with Taylor becomes crucial to the narrative, the bond they share being at the core of a success Clough mostly credits himself with, but also there’s also his damaging obsession with Leeds United’s most successful manager Don Revie (Colm Meaney). A snub by Revie when Clough was still entrenched at the bottom of division two standings with Derby raised Clough’s ire to the extent of creating a long-nurtured grudge; it's one which would poison his chance to take a chunk out of his competitor’s legacy at Leeds when chosen to fill the vacated post Revie abandoned for the coveted England job.
Instead, Clough’s cocky swagger, his refined arrogance bordering on insolence, became a major stumbling block and his plan backfired, leading to an infamously brief 44-day stint at the helm in 1974. Finally relieved of his duties, he would leave the club in disarray with his tail between his legs.
It might almost be regarded as the stuff of Shakespearean tragedy if Clough hadn’t quickly risen from the ashes soon after, though the film itself ends on a rueful note, Clough begging his betrayed friend Taylor for forgiveness. With his confidante back by his side he would later guide Nottingham Forest to European glory, cementing one of the more remarkable tag-teams in football history.
The Damned United may only take a slice out of Clough’s life and fictionalize it around the edges for cinematic purposes, but there’s enough material here for a compelling character study of a man ignorant of his own capacity to fail; Clough becomes his own worst enemy, blinkered to the most essential ingredient of his success and the pitfalls of taking your eye off the ball.
Hooper's direction is mostly functional but the lack of a flashy stylist doesn't hurt the film at all, for front and centre stands Sheen and his remarkable transformative powers. His portrayal of Clough, regardless of how accurate it is, makes for mesmerizing viewing; charismatic, charming, audaciously arrogant, Sheen makes the film his own, disappearing inside this fascinating, enigmatic man.
Spall and Meaney are typically strong in support but make no mistake, they’re playing second fiddle to Sheen in every way. Jim Broadbent also makes a decent stab at depicting Sam Longson, Derby County's long-suffering, harried owner; Clough’s increasingly antagonistic relationship with Longson was to become representative of his downward spiral, entangled in his irrational emotional responses to a man he once held up on a pedestal, thus overruling lucid thinking.
Despise, admire or pity him, Clough’s dominant personality is the foundation compelling drama is built on, and consequently, The Damned United succeeds because of Sheen’s commanding attention to detail and the mastery he displays of his craft.
Watch trailer here.
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