Taglines: “They love me for what I’m not… …they hate me for what I am.”
Set in 1960’s and 1970’s England, “The Damned United” tells the confrontational and darkly humorous story of Brian Clough’s doomed 44 day tenure as manager of the reigning champions of English football club Leeds United.
After failing to qualify for the 1974 World Cup, England manager Alf Ramsey is sacked and replaced by Don Revie, the highly successful manager of Leeds United. Revie is replaced at Leeds by Brian Clough, a former manager of Derby County and a fierce critic of Leeds’s style of play under Revie. Much attention is called to the fact that Clough’s longtime assistant, Peter Taylor has not joined him at Leeds, and Clough claims in an interview to Yorkshire Television that the team cannot possibly have been happy under Revie, due to the violent and physical nature of their game.
The roots of Clough’s conflict with Revie are depicted as happening in a 1967 FA Cup match between Leeds, who were then leading the First Division (though they did not win it that season) and Derby, who were struggling near the bottom of the Second Division. Clough assumes Revie to be a similar man to himself, owing to the fact that they grew up in the same part of Middlesbrough; come the day of the match however, Revie either ignores Clough or fails to make him out in the crowd upon entering Derby’s Baseball Ground stadium. The match proves to be a tough affair, and despite their best efforts Derby lose 20 to Leeds.
Clough initially blames the brutality of the Leeds players, but he and Taylor recognise that their side simply aren’t good enough on a technical level and so remedy the problem by signing veteran Dave Mackay, along with several other young players. The club’s frugal chairman, Sam Longson is extremely anxious about the investment and more so the fact that Clough didn’t bother to consult him about signing Mackay. However, Derby win the Second Division title in 1969, and the following season once more face up to Leeds, the defending First Division champions… and promptly lose 50.
The Damned United is a 2009 British biographical sports drama film directed by Tom Hooper and adapted by Peter Morgan from David Peace’s bestselling novel The Damned Utd, a largely fictional book based on the author’s interpretation of Brian Clough’s ill-fated tenure as football manager of Leeds United in 1974. It was produced by BBC Films and Left Bank Pictures with additional funding from Screen Yorkshire and Columbia Pictures. Sony Pictures Entertainment distributed the film.
The Damned United (2009)
Directed by: Tom Hooper
Starring: Michael Sheen, Timothy Spall, Colm Meaney, Jim Broadbent, Stephen Graham, Peter McDonald, Michael Sheen, Mark Bazeley, Timothy Spall, Maurice Roëves, Peter McDonald, Stephn Graham
Screenplay: Peter Morgan
Production Design by: Eve Stewart
Cinematography by: Ben Smithard
Film Editing by: Melanie Oliver
Costume Design by: Mike O’Neill
Art Direction by: Andrew Holden-Stokes, Leon McCarthy
Music by: Rob Lane
MPAA Rating: R for language.
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Classics
Release Date: October 9, 2009
Views: 93
