Beautiful Thing (1996)

In a suburb of London, young Jamie is escaping sport hours, to avoid being the victim of his comrades. Young Ste, his neighbor, is beaten by his father, and comes to sleep overnight. They discover new feelings, sleeping in the same bed.

Director:

Hettie Macdonald

Writers:

Jonathan Harvey, Jonathan Harvey (play)

Stars:

Meera Syal, Martin Walsh, Glen Berry

4 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Meera Syal	...	Miss Chauhan
Martin Walsh	...	Mr. Bennett
Steven M. Martin	...	Ryan McBride (as Steven Martin)
Andrew Fraser	...	Jayson
John Savage	...	Lenny
Scott Neal	...	Ste Pearce
Glen Berry	...	Jamie Gangel
Julie Smith	...	Gina
Linda Henry	...	Sandra Gangel
Jeillo Edwards	...	Rose
Tameka Empson	...	Leah Russell
Anna Karen	...	Marlene
Garry Cooper	...	Ronnie Pearce
Ben Daniels	...	Tony
Daniel Bowers	...	Trevor Pearce

Storyline

A tender love story set during a hot summer on a South-East London housing estate. Jamie, a relatively unpopular lad who bunks off school to avoid football, lives next door to Ste, a more popular athletic lad but who is frequently beaten up by his father and older brother. Such an episode of violence brings Jamie and Ste together: Sandra (Jamie's mum) offers refugee to Ste, who has to 'top-and-tail' with Jamie. Hence, the story tells of their growing attraction for one another, from initial lingering glances to their irrefutable love, which so magnificently illustrated at the end of the film. In deals with the tribulations of coming to terms with their sexuality and of others finding out, in light of Sandra's unwavering loyalty and defence of Jamie and the fear of repercussion should Ste's family find out. The plot is set against sub-texts of Sandra's desire to manage her own pub, and thus escape the estate, and of her new relationship with her hippy boyfriend Tony; and of Leah, the ...

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Plot Keywords:

neighbor | girl | glasses | bar | bare butt | 

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Taglines:

An urban fairytale.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexuality, pervasive strong language and some drug content

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Classics

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 October 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Csodálatos dolog

Filming Locations:

Anchor Pub, Rotherhithe, London, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$33,931 (USA) (11 October 1996)

Gross:

$1,449,934 (USA) (10 January 1997)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Channel Four Films, World Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Sandra recalls that Cass Elliot died by choking on a sandwich she is repeating an urban legend. "Mama" Cass actually died of heart failure. Reports immediately after her death (before the autopsy) apparently quoted her doctor as saying she probably died by choking on a sandwich. Despite the results of the autopsy, the sandwich story has stuck.

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Goofs

When Jamie and his Mum are fighting on the floor of their living room, the transmitter of the body mike is visible on his back underneath his tee-shirt.

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Quotes

Sandra: [Talking about Ste after he rushes off, obviously upset] What's his problem?
Jamie: He's in love, that's all.

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Connections

Features Algiers (1938)

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Soundtracks

"Welcome To The World"
Music and Lyrics by Scott English and Martin Siegal
Sung by 'Mama' Cass Elliot

User Reviews

Two male teenagers discover love.

Never have I seen such a simple film that was so satisfying. The screenwriter dealt with the issue of homosexuality among teenagers in a realistic and smart manner. Every time the film becomes a little too dramatic, the director has something funny happen to lighten the atmosphere, which makes for a sweet and touching film. Also, all the characters are complex, so that bad characters do good things and good characters do bad things. Nobody is perfect and nobody is all bad, which makes the film even more realistic. It's similar to the more recent Get Real, but Beautiful Thing is definitely better. This is without a doubt my favorite gay film. Only the British can make a film this good!