This (essentially) true story of Brian Clough (Michael Sheen), one of England’s greatest and most controversial soccer managers, centers on how he rose to become the coach of the country’s championship team, Leeds United, only to be fired after 44 days.

CRITIQUE

You don’t have to be a fan of British soccer, or even sporting events, in order to enjoy The Damned United.

In fact, this riveting film, directed by Tom Hooper, is no more about the game of soccer than Gone With the Wind is about the Civil War.  They are merely the backgrounds for stories about human beings dealing with their personal demons.

In Gone With the Wind, Scarlett O’Hara goes from being a capricious young girl to a knowing woman, while in The Damned United, Brian’s Clough massive ego and his compulsive desire to surpass the impressive achievements of rival coach Don Revie (Colm Meaney) nearly destroy him.

Scarlett’s personal story could easily be transposed to the Old West, World War II or even the social revolution of the 1960s, while the saga of Brian Clough would also work well set in the world of baseball, the military or the Hollywood studio system.

Clough’s story actually happened during the late 1960s-early 1970s, and Hooper’s film, adapted by screenwriter Peter Morgan from David Peace’s book, moves back-and-forth between those years.

Leeds United, coached by the arrogant Revie, is England’s championship team, and it’s the ambition of Clough to build his low-rated Debry County team into Leeds’ equal and, even more importantly, defeat them.  Clough’s assistant is the very capable Peter Taylor (Timothy Spall).

For the most part, Clough reaches his goal, but he has butted heads once too often with his boss (Jim Broadbent) and, in a showdown, both he and Taylor are terminated.

Clough’s fortunes change when, after Revie is hired to manage England’s World Cup team, he is chosen to take his place at Leeds United.  Unfortunately, Clough makes the mistake of trying to alter the playing methods of the reigning championship team.  He does this by insulting them, saying that they have never won their games fairly.  This not only turns his players against him, but also causes him to lose every game that the team plays.  Thus, after 44 days on the job, he is fired.

One of the most powerful scenes in the picture occurs after Clough has been fired and he agrees to be interviewed on a local television show, not knowing that he is going to be “ambushed”.  As the live program is about to go onto the air, he discovers that his archrival, Revie, will be appearing on the show with him.

Michael Sheen is terrific as the charismatic egomaniac, Brian Clough, a role that is poles apart from those he played in The Queen and Frost/Nixon.  Sheen’s performance is so engrossing that you want to reach out, grab and shake his character, and yell, “Shmuck, look what you’re doing!  You’re like a speeding car, heading for a brick wall.”

The rest of the cast is also at the very top of their games, and director Hooper has done a fine job of transporting us back to an earlier time and place.

THE VIDEO

The anamorphic widescreen picture often has a gritty look to it, which is, presumably, what the filmmakers intended.

THE AUDIO

The 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound is fine.  The British accents are much more easier to understand than many films from the UK.

THE EXTRAS

Audio Commentary by director Tom Hooper, Michael Sheen and producer Andy Harries.

9 Deleted Scenes are available.

Several featurettes, including a 16-minute “Making of,” containing cast and crew interviews, plus documentaries on how actor Michael Sheen researched/prepared for his real life role, how the cast was trained to play soccer for the movie, remembrances of the real Brian Clough by former fans colleagues and a comparison of today’s game of soccer with how it was played in the 1970s.

FINAL THOUGHT

The Damned United is a superb drama with a captivating performance by star Michael Sheen.