Purely Belter (2000)

Two teenage boys will do anything to get money to buy season tickets for their local team.

Director:

Mark Herman

Writers:

Mark Herman, Jonathan Tulloch (novel)

Stars:

Chris Beattie, Greg McLane, Charlie Hardwick

4 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Chris Beattie	...	Gerry McCarten
Greg McLane	...	Sewell
Charlie Hardwick	...	Mrs. McCarten
Roy Hudd	...	Mr. Sewell
Tim Healy	...	Mr. McCarten
Kevin Whately	...	Mr. Caird
Jody Baldwin	...	Gemma
Kerry Ann Christiansen	...	Bridget
Tracy Whitwell	...	Clare
Kate Garbutt	...	Baby Sheara
Laura Garbutt	...	Baby Sheara
Su Elliot	...	Mrs. Brabin (as Su Elliott)
Daniel James Lake	...	Matthew Brabin
Tracey Wilkinson	...	Mrs. Caird
Libby Davison	...	Miss Warren

Storyline

Two teenage boys will do anything to get money to buy season tickets for their local team.

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Plot Keywords:

newcastle | car theft | bingo | dog | block of flats | 

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Taglines:

They're a couple of zeros short of a grand

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Virgin.net/FilmFour

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 November 2000 (UK)

Also Known As:

Newcastle Boys

Filming Locations:

Chester-le-Street, County Durham, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£289,571 (UK) (3 November 2000)

Gross:

ESP 9,641,139 (Spain) (29 June 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

FilmFour, Mumbo Jumbo Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Sewell and Gemma are talking in private, Gerry wants to know what they're talking about. One of his mates comments: "What are you? Inspector fucking Morse?" Inspector Morse was a highly acclaimed TV series starring John Thaw and Kevin Whately, who plays Mr. Caird in this movie.

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Goofs

When the boys enter Mrs. Brabbin's backyard after she calls them over, there are dogs running everywhere. She says that there are at least fourteen of them. They load up the refrigerator and, while Mrs. Brabin watches them, they leave the backyard. Suddenly all the dogs are gone.

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Quotes

Sewell: If I'd wanted to hear a whining asshole, I'd have farted.

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Soundtracks

"I WISH IT COULD BE CHRISTMAS EVERYDAY"
Written by Roy Wood
Published by Roy Wood Publishing
Performed by Wizzard
(P) 1973 Courtesy of EMI Records Ltd.

User Reviews

mediocre at best

Herman has made northern drama his own with Little Voice and Brassed Off, but the formula falters in this ropey, flat and contrived tale of two teenage delinquents trying to get season tickets to see Newcastle.

Truancy, underage smoking and drinking, underage sex, teenage abortion, school bullying, drug abuse, substance abuse, depression, child violence, child sex abuse, shoplifting, housebreaking, auto theft, violent assault and armed robbery all put in an appearance here. None of these issues are explored, they merely serve to move the story along from one implausible situation to another. The film is not as acutely observed as Trainspotting, as poignant as The Full Monty, or as reflective of the times as Wonderland (from which it shamelessly steals music in an overly-manipulative manner). I suspect none of the filmmakers are from Newcastle, and have certainly never experienced the social problems the film references. I am all for entertainment, and Herman's track record shows he is aware of the need to balance the social message with laughs and tears. Quite simply, he comes up incredibly short here.

The film has a nice ending, but there are far too many flat, banal moments to sit through to get there. Nicely shot, not very well acted, and ultimately fails on three crucial points: script, script, script.