Shiner (2000)

The past catches up with a ruthlessly ambitious boxing promoter.

Director:

John Irvin

Writer:

Scott Cherry (screenplay)

Stars:

Michael Caine, Martin Landau, Frances Barber

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Caine	...	Billy 'Shiner' Simpson
Martin Landau	...	Frank Spedding
Frances Barber	...	Georgie
Frank Harper	...	Jeff 'Stoney' Stone
Andy Serkis	...	Mel
Danny Webb	...	Karl
Claire Rushbrook	...	Ruth
Matthew Marsden	...	Eddie 'Golden Boy' Simpson
Kenneth Cranham	...	Gibson
David Kennedy	...	Chris
Peter Wight	...	Det. Insp. Grant
Nicola Walker	...	Det. Sgt. Garland
Gary Lewis	...	Vic
Derrick Harmon	...	Mikey Peck
Josephine Butler	...	Stephanie

Storyline

Billy Simpson is a shady boxing promoter in South London banned from legitimate fights. It's the biggest day of his life, though, because he has a champion on his hands, his twenty-year-old son, Eddie. Billy's put all of his money on a victory, as have his quarrelling daughters. But Eddie is nervous, an odd guy in a cap is hanging around, the licensed promoter Billy has hired to arrange the evening's other fights has hired dogs, the manager of Eddie's opponent looks down scornfully on Billy and on south London, and Scotland Yard wants to put Billy in jail for the death of a club brawler. When the night goes disastrously wrong, Billy tries to find out who double-crossed him.

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Plot Keywords:

male frontal nudity | male rear nudity | male nudity | promoter | boxing | 

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Taglines:

All That's Left Is... Revenge.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, pervasive language and some nudity

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 September 2001 (UK)

Also Known As:

Bilis pravarde Melyne

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Geoff Reeve Films, Vision View Entertainment, Wisecroft Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Like many of the movies picked up by Miramax Films in the early 2000s, this one was supposed to be given a theatrical release, but ended up debuting on DVD when the company encountered financial trouble.

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Goofs

After Gibson shoots Stoney through the head, and Billy crawls toward him, Stoney can clearly be seen blinking as Billy yells at him.

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Quotes

Karl: I advise you not to say anything, Billy.

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Alternate Versions

Although this film was previously passed for an uncut 18 in the UK by the British Board of Film Classification, the 2007 distributor wanted a 15, so 30 seconds' worth of cuts were made to remove some of the violence, including a man being shot in the head and a man having his arm broken.

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Soundtracks

T.N.T.
Performed by AC/DC
Written by Malcolm Young, Angus Young & Bon Scott (as Bon Scott)
Published by J. Albert & Son, (UK), Ltd.

User Reviews

Michael Caine's paranoia is worth seeing.....

Not much of a boxing movie, so if your interest is in the sport you are sure to be disappointed. Character development is spotty, especially with Michael Caine's children. Caine's two henchmen come across well, and Michael Caine gives an impressive and believable performance. Martin Landau is mostly wasted in the background. What is intriguing is Caine's rapidly escalating paranoia regarding his ill advised decision to risk everything on his son's big fight. When things derail, Caine blames everyone but himself for the disaster. Unpleasant consequences follow for anyone he suspects of sabotaging his dream. Eventually the wheels come off and we learn if Caine's suspicions were imagined or correct. - MERK