Billy Elliot (2000)

Foursquare in the gritty-but-heartwarming tradition of Brassed Off and The Full Monty comes Billy Elliot, the first film from noted British theatrical director Stephen Daldry. The setting is County Durham in 1984, and things "up north" are even grimmer than usual: the miners' strike is in full rancorous swing, and 11-year-old Billy's dad and older brother, miners both, are on the picket lines. Billy's got problems of his own. His dad has scraped together the fees to send him to boxing lessons, but Billy has discovered a different aptitude: a genius for ballet dancing. Since admitting to such an activity is tantamount, in this fiercely macho culture, to holding up a sign reading "I Am Gay," Billy keeps it quiet. But his teacher, Mrs. Wilkinson (Julie Walters, wearily undaunted), thinks he should audition for ballet school in London. Family ructions are inevitable.

Daldry's film sidesteps some of the politics, both sexual and otherwise, but scores with its laconic dialogue (credit to screenwriter Lee Hall) and a cracking performance from newcomer Jamie Bell as Billy. His powerhouse dance routines, more Gene Kelly than Nureyev, carry an irresistible sense of exhilaration and self-discovery. Among a flawless supporting cast, Stuart Wells stands out as Billy's sweet gay friend Michael. And if the miners' strike serves largely as background color, the brief episode when visored and truncheon-wielding cops rampage through neat little terraced houses captures one of the most spiteful episodes in recent British history. --Philip Kemp Amazon.com

'JUST BECAUSE I LIKE BALLET, DOESN'T MEAN I'M A PUFF!"

Interesting tale a young boy's desire to take ballet lessons, but avoid the stigma attached to it. I found this film to be very inspired with good performances all around. If I had one problem with this film, it was the thick accent spoken is tough to understand sometimes and I found myself straining to figure out what was being said in some instances. It's quirky and off beat and may enlighten some narrow minded people out there!........not everything is black and white :-) July 20, 2008

Much Better Than Expected

I spent 6 years in China, and every time an American film was "heartwarming" my students tripped all over themselves falling in love with it, while I fought the powerful urge to retch.

With that out of the way, this heartwarming tale about a strained father-son relationship filled with "you don't understand me" is genuinely clever, witty, moving, brilliantly written and acted, and just damn funny in a number of places.

"Coal miners on strike" gave me flashbacks to another film that was equally popular in China, OCTOBER SKY, but in this case it's only incidental to the plot, not a focal point. Much more violent, however. You'd know this wasn't Disney even without all the profanity.

"Hey," someone told me, "It's about this kid who gives up boxing for ballet." And I replied, dripping with sarcasm, "Yeah, I'm gonna watch that." But no, this movie is very cool. I'm never going to take up ballet, but I'm sure glad Billy did. Yep, Billy feels that real to me, like talking about a real person. So does everyone else in this fine, fine film.
July 16, 2008

Dancing machine

"Billy Elliot" is a great film about an 11-year-old boy (Jamie Bell) who has an amazing talent for ballet dancing. Unfortunately for Billy, his coal-miner father (Gary Lewis) isn't exactly the type of man who appreciates the art of dance, and he insists that his son take boxing lessons instead. Unable to stifle his passion, Billy continues to train in secret with the help of his ballet teacher (Julie Walters). Eventually Billy has the opportunity to audition for a major dance academy, and his father finds out what his son has been doing behind his back all this time. Major family drama ensues, but everything manages to fall in place at the end.

I really enjoyed this movie. It's heartwarming, inspirational, and incredibly funny. The cast is amazing, and Bell's dance routines are outstanding. This is a great, feel-good film that everyone will enjoy. July 6, 2008

Honest and Heartfelt

I was a ballet and dance performer in high school when this film first came out, and it struck me as one of the most genuine movies since.

Billy Elliot (Jamie Bell) is part of a family that, without a mother, flows with strong masculine influence; he takes boxing lessons regularly by his fathers influence, but young Billy seems to be unable to connect with the sport. Once he discovers the ballet class of a schoolmate, he begins to practice with them, awakening a passion inside of him that would guide him through trial and tribulation before he can share this joy with the world around him.

This film is honest in several key areas. When I was in school, it was expected of me to play football or wrestling, as opposed to ballet in dance. My typical rebuttal would be that it is better to spend evenings around girls in tights then on football fields grabbing other men. For me it was a sense of humor that allowed me to consider my passion "normal," but young Elliot cannot define his passion, even by the end of the film.

When asked at the conclusion of his audition for the Royal Ballet School, "what does it feel like, when you're dancing?" He responds "I don't know." Sensing the dissatisfaction of the panel which will determine if he can enter the school, he tries to define it as best he can. Speaking from experience, there are some passions that are simply so truely and deply a part of you that you cannot simply "justify" them with words, they are simply a part of you.

This film is true and honest to that passion; for ballet enthusiasts, you'll immediately understand the "political" development around what is "normal" for a young ballet performer. As a non-influenced audiencemember, you're bound to appreciate every conflict, frustration, denial and accomplishment that is so masterfully displayed on screen. Filled with scenes that will bring any family audience closer together, this film is truly as honest and heartfelt as they come. June 22, 2008

A Film and Stage Triumph

I had the rare treat of seeing the reincarnation of the movie "Billy Elliot" as a musical in the falls of 2005 and 2006 in London's West End where it is a huge hit. For me it is one of the best works of the last decade. With a variety of musical styles by Elton John the stage show is a masterful production finally to be produced in the U.S. in the fall of 2008. The movie itself is a skillfully crafted work, highly original, affecting, and perfectly cast.
In Billy's small mining town in northern England in the anti-labor Thatcher era, the miners are on strike. There's a heavy, oppressive police presence. The police are as much symbolic and iconic as they are real, and act as a mute chorus to the action throughout the movie. In one scene Billy is walking with a girl, and as they stroll she lightly taps the successive shields held by a line of silent, unmoving cops; the police are robotic, mechanistic, inhuman but menacing presences.
Billy has the audacity to prefer ballet classes to the manly boxing classes his striking father is paying fifty p for him to attend. Jamie Bell as eleven year-old Billy is a superb dancer, who is given masculine, very original pieces to interpret. His acting is equally brilliant. The dance teacher played to the hilt by Julie Walters is a tour de force performance. There's sentimentality, but it's humanity that triumphs here.
This is a brilliant, highly innovative, pioneering film. The ending with adult dancer Adam Cooper is truly memorable, a heart stopper for those familiar with Matthew Bourne's great work for male dancers.

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