The Damned United (2009)

A look at Brian Clough's 44-day reign as the coach of Leeds United.

Director:

Tom Hooper

Writers:

Peter Morgan (screenplay), David Peace (novel)

Stars:

Colm Meaney, Henry Goodman, David Roper

5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Colm Meaney	...	Don Revie
Henry Goodman	...	Manny Cussins
David Roper	...	Sam Bolton
Jimmy Reddington	...	Keith Archer
Oliver Stokes	...	Nigel Clough
Ryan Day	...	Simon Clough
Michael Sheen	...	Brian Clough
Mark Bazeley	...	Austin Mitchell
Timothy Spall	...	Peter Taylor
Maurice Roëves	...	Jimmy Gordon
Stephen Graham	...	Billy Bremner
Peter McDonald	...	Johnny Giles
Mark Cameron	...	Norman Hunter
Frank Skillin	...	Younger Nigel Clough
Dylan Van Hoof	...	Younger Simon Clough

Storyline

Taking over England's top football club Leeds United, previously successful manager Brian Clough's abrasive approach and his clear dislike of the players' dirty style of play make it certain there is going to be friction. Glimpses of his earlier career help explain both his hostility to previous manager Don Revie and how much he is missing right-hand man Peter Taylor who has loyally stayed with Brighton & Hove Albion.

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Plot Keywords:

leeds united | football | brighton | cup | flashback | 

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Taglines:

"They love me for what I'm not... ...they hate me for what I am."

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Genres:

Biography | Comedy | Drama | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Pictures [fr] Sony Pictures [uk]

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 March 2009 (UK)

Also Known As:

Az elátkozott Leeds United

Filming Locations:

Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$32,065 (USA) (9 October 2009)

Gross:

$449,558 (USA) (5 February 2010)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, BBC Films, Screen Yorkshire

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to published reports, Kenneth Branagh was considered for the role of Don Revie.

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Goofs

The tie against Leeds shows Derby being so badly fouled by the Leeds players they have to field reserves against Juventus. While Derby did suffer some injuries in the tie against Leeds that year, it actually came before their quarter-final match against Spartak Trnava, which Derby still won despite missing some key players. Moreover, the injuries were not as serious as implied in the film, and all the injured players had recovered by the time of the eventual 3-1 defeat by Juventus which was with a near full-strength Derby squad minus two players who were suspended.

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Quotes

Brian Clough: [to the assembled Leeds players] Well, I might as well tell you now. You lot may all be internationals and have won all the domestic honours there are to win under Don Revie. But as far as I'm concerned, the first thing you can do for me is to chuck all your medals and all your caps and all your pots and all your pans into the biggest fucking dustbin you can find, because you've never won any of them fairly. You've done it all by bloody cheating.

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Connections

Referenced in Creating Clough (2010)

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Soundtracks

"When the Saints Go Marching In"
Traditional

User Reviews

Sheen is Clough

Having read the book, I did expect a darker film, however, it is not to the detriment of the film that it attempts to give the interpretation a 'feel good factor. Sheen is utterly brilliant as Clough and captures the ego, charisma and above all weakness of the man. The support cast are excellent, although Spall did struggle to look comfortable in a sporting film (Taylor was en ex goalie and poor Tim's got 10 to 2 feet etc). There are a lot of factual inaccuracies, but it is based on a 'faction novel' so one should not allow this to spoil a memorable film and if it does nothing else it does make you feel extremely nostalgic to this era.