Blackball (2003)

User Rating:

5.3/10   

Director:

Mel Smith

Writer:

Tim Firth (written by)

Release Date:

5 September 2003 (UK)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Sport

Tagline:

At last, a sportsman the British can be proud of...

Plot:

A rebellious young British bowls player teams with another older and more traditional player to take on the Australian bowls team.

Plot Keywords:

Painter | Sports Agent | Class Conflict | Fall From Ladder | Sports Car

Cast

Paul Kaye	...	Cliff Starkey
James Cromwell	...	Ray Speight
Alice Evans	...	Kerry Speight
Bernard Cribbins	...	Mutley
Johnny Vegas	...	Trevor
Vince Vaughn	...	Rick Schwartz
Imelda Staunton	...	Bridget
James Fleet	...	Alan the Pipe
David Ryall	...	Giles Wilton
Ian McNeice	...	Hugh The Sideburns
Kenneth Cranham	...	Chairman Collins
Terry Alderton	...	Bouncer Jonno
Emma Amos	...	Local News Reporter
Paul Bentall	...	Gate Guard (as Paul Bental)
Neil Conrich	...	Reporter Dave

Also Known As:

National Lampoon's Blackball (USA) (video title)

MPAA:

Rated R for language.

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 | UK:15 | USA:R | Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company:

Midfield Films

Trivia:

'Johnny Vegas' is the only cast member who can actually play bowls and does not do so in the film.

Goofs:

Continuity: There is paper confetti all over the floor of the indoor bowling green for the England Vs Australia match, in the next shot there is none.

Movie Connections:

References Rocky (1976)

Gentle comedy that we Brits do so well

Ok, so this isn't going to be hailed the new The Full Monty, and doesn't have the romantic edge of Four Weddings And A Funeral, and it may not even have the charm of Bend It Like Beckham, but Blackball is an amusing, sometimes laugh-out-loud tale of the underdog winning through in the end.

Paul Kaye (more famous for his role of Dennis Pennis) plays Cliff, a guy living on a run-down estate but who has a talent for Crown Green Bowls, a sport more recognised for the older generation. But when a team from Australia are storming in the bowls arena, Cliff decides that his only way of getting to play them, is to win a bowls contest for the County Championship, a competition won 23 times in a row by Roy (James Cromwell). Of course he wins, but loses the championship and the chance to bowl for 15 years in professional competition due to a rule that Cliff broke.

The rise to fame is helped by a sleazy sports agent (Vince Vaughn) and Cliff becomes the bad boy of bowls. He also falls for Roy's daughter (Alice Evan s) and in his rise to the big time, almost loses everything that he holds dear to him, from his Grandad (Bernard Cribbins), his best friend (Johnny Vegas) and his girl.

This isn't going to win any major awards and may be forgotten about six months down the road, but it's an undemanding piece of comedy cinema that will have you chuckling all the way through. Nice performances from all involved, and a great soundtrack too.